E Learning General Flashcards
d: bactericidal antibiotic
kill bacteria
d: bacteriostatic antibiotic
inhibit bacterial growth
describe the pathway of an antibiotic that’s taken orally
absorbed by small intestine and spread throughout body, some is excreted unchanged in faeces
Name the 3 ways antibiotics work
act on bacteria cell wall
affect the bacterial ribosome
acting on bacterial DNA directly
why is the cell wall method used?
mammalian cells have no cell wall
why can AB affecting the bacterial ribosome used?
mammalian RIBOSOMES are structurally different to bacterial RIBOSOMES
why can AB acting on bacterial DNA directly be used?
bacterial DNA structurally diff from mammalian DNA
Name 3 antibiotics that act on the cell wall and are bactericidal
Penicillins
Cephalosporins
Glycopeptides
How does penicillin and cephalosporin’s work?
inhibit cell wall synthesis by blocking crosslinking peptidoglycan’s
are penicillin’s safe during pregnancy?
yes
what are penicillin’s excreted by?
kidneys
what is the spectrum of penicillin?
broad
what are cephalosporins excreted by?
kidneys and urine
name 2 glycopeptides
Vancomycin
Teicoplanin (IV)
How do glycopeptide AB work?
Vancomycin binds to the end of the growing pentapeptide chain during peptidoglycan synthesis, preventing cross-linking and weakening the bacterial cell wall
how do glycopeptides have to be administered?
via IV
How are glycopeptides excreted?
via kidneys and urine
what can happen if toxic levels of vancomycin in the blood build up?
if the patient already has kidney failure it can cause further kidney damage
what are glycopeptides only active against?
organisms with a gram positive cell wall
why may vancomycin be given orally?
to treat C.diff infection
where it acts topically on the gut lumen
how do AB that inhibit protein synthesis do so?
attach to bacterial ribosomes
are protein synthesis AB bacteriostatic or bactericidal? what is the one exception?
bacteriostatic
aminoglycosides
Name the 2 main groups of AB that inhibit protein synthesis
Macrolides
Aminoglycosides
Name 3 macrolides
Erythromycin
Clarythromycin
Azithromycin
what are macrolides excreted by?
liver
biliary tract
into the gut
( not excreted in urine)
What properties of macrolides make them useful for infections where bacteria hide from hosts immune system?
lipophilic
pass through cell membranes easily
name 3 useful ways macrolides can be used and egs
for treating infections caused by intracellular organisms eg legionella
for treating infections cause by organisms that don’t have a proper bacterial cell wall eg mycoplasma and chlamydia
useful as alternate antibiotic for treating some infections where patients are allergic to penicillin
Name an aminoglycoside
gentamicin (IV)
how does gentamicin work?
binds to ribosomes inhibiting protein synthesis