Bacteria and Viruses Flashcards
Bacteria are prokaryotes. What are some of the main characteristics of prokaryotes?
Prokaryotes have NO nucleus. Specifically, bacteria have a cell well made of peptidoglycan.
What are some basic key features of bacterial structure?
Smaller than eukaryotes, no nucleus, no organelles, same DNA-RNA-Protein pathway (central dogma), and have a cell well.
What are the two different types of bacteria?
Gram negative and gram positive bacteria
What is a gram-negative bacteria?
A bacteria that has a very thin peptidoglycan wall with a complex outer membrane channels. These bacteria also have lipopolysaccharides on the outside of their outer membrane which alters how their interact with the immune system.
What is a gram-positive bacteria?
A bacteria with a thick peptidoglycan coat surrounding its plasma membrane. The peptidoglycan cell wall is made of peptides and sugars making this type of bacteria more water soluble. Having a thick cell makes bacteria easier to treat as long as they lack resistance.
What is the common cause of most urinary tract infections (UTIs)?
E. Coli is normally the cause of UTIs. This bacteria resides in the intestines and cause infection when they migrate to the genitourinary tract and begin secreting toxins and lipopolysaccharides.
What are some characteristics of E. Coli?
E. Coli is a gram-negative bacteria that is rod shaped.
What is the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC)?
This is the concentration of a drug that inhibits bacterial growth by 50%.
What drug would most commonly be prescribed for a urinary tract infection caused by E. Coli?
Nitrofurantoin
What are some characteristics about the antibiotic Nitrofurantoin?
Broad spectrum antibiotic. Has less resistance to bacteria compared to its counterparts. It is a synthetic drug. Collects in the bladder as well. Bactericidal.
What is the MOA of Nitrofurantoin?
This drug enters into bacterial cells where it is activated by the bacteria’s nitroreductase. Once activated, this drug damages bacterial DNA, RNA, and ribosomes making the drug bactericidal.
What is the difference between a bacteriostatic and bactericidal drug?
A bacteriostatic drug stops the bacteria from growing compared to a bactericidal drug that kills the bacteria.
What is the difference between a narrow spectrum antibiotic and a broad spectrum antibiotic?
Narrow spectrum antibiotics can only affect one type of bacteria while broad spectrum antibiotics can kill several types of bacteria.
Why can Nitrofurantoin be used to treat UTIs even though it is a broad spectrum antibiotic?
Nitrofurantoin accumulates in the bladder making it a good drug to target urinary tract infections. However, this drug could also hurt some of the good bacteria in the body.
What are the pharmacokinetics of Nitrofurantoin?
80% of the drug forms a gel in the GIT allowing it to be more readily absorbed and slowly dissolved.
What is Acute Bacterial Rhinosinusitis (ABRS)?
Inflammation of the sinuses due to bacterial infection.
What bacteria is likely the cause of Acute Bacterial Rhinosinusitis (ABRS)?
Streptococcus pneumonia. This is a gram-positive bacteria.
What antibiotic is typically prescribed in order to treat ABRS?
Amoxicillin with or without Clavulanate.
What is the MOA of amoxicillin? (Amoxicillin and Penicillin are both Beta-Lactam antibiotics which both work in inhibiting PBP).
Amoxicillin competitively inhibits penicillin-binding-proteins (PBP). PBP is a transpeptidase that is responsible for the cross-linking of D-alanine and D-aspartic acid in bacterial cell walls. Without this action of PBP, bacteria are not able to build cell walls leading to bactericidal action.
What are the main characteristics of Amoxicillin?
Broad spectrum and bacteriocidal drug with a short half-life and low toxicity. Effective against most gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria.
Is Amoxicillin effective against non-growing bacteria?
No, it is not effective against bacteria not trying to grow their cell wall.
What is the significance of different lactam rings inside different variations of the beta-lactam antibiotics?
What is the deal behind antibiotic resistance regarding production of lactamases by some bacteria?
Bacteria have small portions of circular additional DNA called plasmids. These plasmids can produce proteins that break down antibiotics. The plasmid creates beta-lactamases or penicillinases to destroy the beta-lactam ring in beta-lactam antibiotics. these plasmids holding antibiotics resistant data can be shared with other bacteria so they can develop resistance as well.
Is there another beta-lactam antibiotic that can inhibit antibiotic resistance?
Clavulanate limits bacterial resistance by inhibiting the production of lactamases from bacterial plasmid.
What are the main types of antibiotic resistance?
A. Plasmid producing lactamases or penicillinases that break down lactam ring in some lactam antibiotics
B. Altered penicillin binding proteins (PBPs)
C. Decreased permeability to drugs so they cannot reach the PBPs.
Penicillin allergies are fairly common. What is the reason for this happening?
Penicillin ends up binding to T cells in the body and activating them which signals an immune response. Typical symptoms include rash, itching, fever, swelling, shortness of breath, and sometimes anaphylaxis.
What is the difference between Penicillin and Cephalosporins?
These drug classes inhibit the same target. For mild allergies, Cephalosporins can be used as its chemical structure is slightly different. However, for intense allergies, this drug can not be used.
When patients have intense allergies to Penicillin Antibiotics, what is an alternative antibiotic group they could take?
Fluoroquinolones
What is the function of the antibiotic group Fluoroquinolones?
Bacteria grows quickly (constant S phase) and, in part, relies heavily on active DNA synthesis. When DNA is replicated, helicases unwind the DNA first, which causes torsional stress. The enzyme called DNA gyrase then goes to unwind or rewind DNA to resolve the torsional stress. Fluoroquinolones inhibit DNA gyrase.
What is the specific fluoroquinolone discussed in class?
Moxifloxacin
What is the MOA of Moxifloxacin?
Inhibits DNA gyrase, therefore, stopping the replication of DNA. Causes a build-up of broken DNA that the bacteria can not use.
What is the bacteria Anaplasma phagocytophilum?
This is a gram-negative bacteria that live inside immune cells called neutrophils. Causes a disease called granulocytic anaplasmosis.
How would granulocytic anaplasmosis be treated?
Through the use of the antibiotic group of Tetracyclines. Specifically, the tetracycline antibiotic called Doxycycline.
Tetracyclines are approved for children under 8 years old (T/F).
False; Tetracycline antibiotics are NOT approved for children under the age of 8.
Why are tetracyclines called what they are called?
Tetracyclines are made up of 4 cyclic rings.
What are some basic characteristics of Tetracycline antibiotics?
A bacteriostatic drug that rids the cell of protein. If the drug were to leave the cell, the translation of RNA to protein would begin again. Very hydrophobic drug allowing it a high bioavailability. Very broad spectrum antibiotic.
What is the MOA of Tetracyclines?
Bacteria have 2 RNA subunits working when translating RNA to protein. These subunits are the 50s and 30s. These subunits add amino acids to the growing protein chain after they have recruited tRNA to bring the appropriate amino acid. Tetracyclines will actually bind the 30s subunit of RNA, which blocks tRNA and therefore blocks amino acids to build a protein. Therefore, protein synthesis is inhibited.
What about the MOA of tetracyclines allows them to act against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria?
Protein synthesis within all bacteria is very similar. Since this drug targets the 30s subunit, which all bacteria have, it makes sense that it would not discriminate in the bacteria it stops from producing proteins.
What are some things that interfere with the absorption of tetracycline antibiotics?
When taken with dairy products and/or antiacids, tetracyclines are not absorbed as well.
What are the adverse effects of tetracycline antibiotic use?
Binds to bone and tooth enamel causing dark discolouration. It can cross the placenta, so it is not used in pregnant women. Can also result in hepatotoxicity.
What is another use for tetracyclines discussed in class?
It can be used to treat acne. The bacteria Cutibacterium Acnes goes into pores and causes inflammation. Tetracyclines limit the growth of these facial bacteria by inhibiting their ability to make proteins.
Could a TNF inhibitor be used for severe acne?
No! A TNF inhibitor would not allow your body to mount basic immune responses.
What is the antibiotic Azithromycin?
This drug targets the 50S subunit of RNA involved in translating RNA to protein. Halts protein production in bacteria.
What causes Tuberculosis?
A bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This is a gram-positive non-motile rod with a waxy coat around it.
What is the typical lifecycle for tuberculosis infection?
This bacteria is breathed in and loves the oxygen-rich environment of the lungs. Once in the lungs, alveolar macrophages phagocytose the bacteria, where they thrive and replicate. With all the immune cells being used to grow the bacteria, a granulosa forms in the lungs. When the structure is left unchecked and ruptured is when the disease is active and spreads.
What are the early symptoms of tuberculosis typically from?
Early symptoms are from basic immune responses attempting to defeat the bacteria.
What feature of Adalimumab (Humira) would cause a stagnant TB infection to become active?
Adalimumab is a fully human monoclonal antibody that binds TNF-alpha and neutralizes it. This stops the body from being able to mount a proper immune response to an invader, which allows TB to become active and spread throughout the body.
How is Tuberculosis treated?
Isoniazid
What is the MOA of Isoniazid?
Isoniazid targets mycolic acid synthesis on the waxy layer of the cell wall. This interferes with cell wall synthesis producing a bacteriocidal effect.
Drugs without mycolic acid as the outer layer of the cell wall can still be treated with Isoniazid (T/F).
False; Isoniazid only blocks mycolic acid so bacteria without this would NOT be affected.
What are some basic characteristics of Isoniazid?
Narrow spectrum antibiotic that is bactericidal.
What are DNA viruses?
This is a type of virus that contains DNA as its genetic material and uses DNA-dependent DNA polymerase during replication.
What are the different types of DNA viruses discussed in class?
Herpes Viruses (8 different ones; HSV1, HSV2) and Hepatitis B.
How does the herpes virus begin its cell cycle?
Infects cells in the nervous system through its outer glycoproteins interacting with receptors on the cell surface. The virus’s genetic material will enter the cell, where it then enters the nucleus. Viral circular DNA is transcribed into RNA inside the nucleus of our cells through the use of viral DNA-dependent DNA polymerase. The virus can enter the latent (inactive) or lytic (active) infection stage. This virus can also be reactivated during body stress or immune suppression. Once this infection is in the body, the host will always have it.
Which of the following types of nucleic acid synthesis are performed by the virus in this figure?
DNA-to-DNA
What drug is used to treat the DNA virus Herpes?
Acyclovir
What is the drug Acyclovir?
This drug is a competitive inhibitor for viral DNA polymerase.
How does the Km and Vmax change for a competitive inhibitor?
Vmax (Maximum reaction velocity at which all enzymes are saturated with substrate) is unchanged. This makes sense because with enough substrate, you can overcome the competitive inhibition and reach the same reaction velocity.
Km (substrate concentration when half maximum velocity is reached) is increased. This makes sense because you will need more substrate to beat out the inhibitor to reach half the velocity of the reaction.