Sulfonamides were the first effective chemoterapeutic agents
employed systematically for the prevention and cure of bacterial
infections in humans. They are the drugs of choice for the treatment of chancroid, nocardiosis and acute urinary tract infections
caused by several microorganisms includingEscherichia coliand
Proteus mirabilis. These substances can be used combined with
other drugs in the treatment of otitis, meningitis, toxoplasmosis,
recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections and in diarrhea,
among other diseases[1–3]. Sulfonamides were also used in a variety of applications including antitumor agents[4], diuretics [5],
carbonic anhydrase inhibitors[6], hypoglycaemic agents [7], and
thyroid and protease inhibitors [8,9]. Recently, it was reported
the presence of pathogens with sulfonamide-resistance genes in
drinking water[10