4.1.1: Communicable Diseases: Sources Of Medicine Flashcards
What is the significance of biodiversity in relation to medicine?
Biodiversity is important as it may contain undiscovered potential medicines produced by plants and microorganisms.
Many medicines have been sourced from microorganisms and plants.
Define antibiotic.
A substance produced by a microorganism that inhibits the growth of other microorganisms.
Antibiotics have been widely used since the discovery of penicillin in the mid-20th century.
What are the three key ways antibiotics kill bacteria?
- Preventing cell wall synthesis
- Disrupting cell membranes
- Interfering with protein synthesis
Antibiotics like penicillin, ampicillin, and cephalosporins are examples of those that inhibit cell wall synthesis.
How do antibiotics prevent cell wall synthesis?
They inhibit the enzymes responsible for making molecules in cell walls, causing bacteria to lyse due to leakage of contents.
Examples include penicillin and cephalosporins.
What is the role of antibiotics in disrupting cell membranes?
Some antibiotics bind to phospholipids in the bacterial cell membrane, distorting its structure and increasing permeability.
This can lead to bacterial death.
How do antibiotics interfere with protein synthesis?
They attach to bacterial ribosomes, preventing the synthesis of proteins.
Streptomycin and tetracyclines are examples of such antibiotics.
What causes antibiotic resistance?
Random mutations in bacterial genetic material can lead to new proteins that provide a selective advantage for survival.
This mutation allows bacteria to survive antibiotic treatment.
What is the result of widespread antibiotic use and misuse?
It strengthens selection pressure, leading to rapid spread of antibiotic resistance among bacteria.
Non-resistant bacteria are killed, leaving resistant strains to survive and reproduce.
Where is the mutated gene for antibiotic resistance found?
In the plasmid, which is a loop of DNA that can be exchanged between bacteria.
This allows resistant bacteria to spread their resistance.
Name two common resistant bacterial strains.
- Clostridium difficile
- MRSA
These strains have developed resistance to antibiotics.
What common medicine is sourced from willow bark?
Aspirin
Aspirin is a well-known pain reliever derived from the willow tree.
What is digoxin and where is it sourced from?
Digoxin is sourced from foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea).
It is used in the treatment of various heart conditions.
Fill in the blank: Antibiotics can kill bacteria by preventing cell wall synthesis, disrupting cell membranes, and _______.
[interfering with protein synthesis]
