Module #4 - Antibiotics Flashcards
what are antibiotics
anti life
contain poisons that selectively target microbes like bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses
who came up with magic bullet, tarpan red, and Salvarsan 606
Paul erlich
magic bullet concept
describes idea of something being able to selectively kill microbes within body without harming body itself
like firing gun at a specific target
trypan red discovery
Erlich noticed some cells under microscope took in red dye more than others and discovered some chemical property was causing this
trypanosome cells were studies (sleeping sickness)
describe Salvarsan 606 discovery/SAR
Erlich used structure of red dye, but replaced nitrogen with arsenic to develop poison that targeted bad cells only
characteristics + issues of Salvarsan 606
target syphillis
1st antibiotic to be sold
issues = insoluble, large doses through injection (no iv therefore caused necrosis)
who is responsible for creation of prontosil? three general characteristics
Gerhard domagk
1st commercially successful antibiotic, made from another chemical dye, only effective in-vivo (liver) because it is where active form is made
what is the active form of prontosil? how is it formed?
sulfanilamade
prontosil enters liver - metabolism takes place - prontosil essentially cut in half - sulphanilamide formed (active form)
main purposes of sulfanilamide + why is it important to have strong immune system
prevents the production of coenzyme F which inhibits bacterial growth
good immune system required because it kills off any remaining bacteria
how is coenzyme F produced? what does its production allow for?
PABA is the messenger molecule for the enzyme that produces coenzyme F
PABA binds to active site of enzyme which in turn produces coenzyme F
production allows for bacterial growth to occur
how does sulfanilamide prevent the production of coenzyme F? what type of inhibition takes place?
acts as a competitive inhibitor
resembles PABA, and binds to active site of enzyme that produces coenzyme F
interacts with/blocks active site so PABA can no longer bind
therefore, not coenzyme F production
why does protosil/sulfanilamide not harm the human body?
human body lacks coenzyme F
therefore there is nothing in the human body that sulfanilmade can interact with
what part of drug is typically modified when SAR is performed?
heterocycle - the part of the molecule that doesn’t make it into the active site of an enzyme
most penicillins are _____. what does this term mean?
semi-synthetic (modified versions of natural penicillin)
are more drug-like than the original penicillin
describe the discoveries of Alexander fleming
accidentally contaminated Petri dish of bacteria with some mold growing in this lab
mold was unknowingly penicillin mold that secreted penicillin
penicillin killed some of bacteria in the dish
didn’t realize the discovery he had made, but published findings
describe the discoveries of Howard Florey and Ernest Chain
spent years trying to determine the chemical substance tat the mold in Fleming’s lab was secreting - and succeeded
published data showing that penicillin could kill disease w/o harming the organism
describe the structure of human cells
surrounded by cell membrane
no cell wall
inner contents exist at low pressure
describe the structure of bacterial cells
surrounded by cell membrane and cell wall
inner content exist at high pressure
importance of bacterial cell wall
protects cell from outside environment and contains the high internal osmotic pressure
is rigid, imparts structure, and resists the pressure
also the target of penicillin
what causes cellular osmotic pressure
lots of stuff inside cells, and less outside = results in conc. gradient
conc gradient balanced by moving solvent through membrane = results in osmotic pressure
describe overall structure of cell wall
peptidoglycan structure
consists of polysaccharide chains (sugar chains) and peptide cross links (amino acids) that connect the polysaccharide chains together
what does a larger peptidoglycan structure result in?
stronger cell wall therefore greater ability of bacteria cell to withstand osmotic pressure
how do polysaccharide chains and peptide cross links relate?
polysaccharide chains very weak/slippery
cross links form connections between strands creating a rigid network
what is transpeptidase
the enzyme that links together peptide chains to form peptide cross links in the peptidoglycan structure of bacterial cell walls
what is the difference between L and D amino acids?
both represent overall structure/configuration/stereochemistry of amino acids
L = very common
D = very rare, but seen in peptide chains/cross links
only difference is stereochemistry of side chain = R group is wedge in D, and hash in L
how is a peptide cross link formed?
transpeptidase enzyme links together peptide chains to form peptide cross links
what is the main purpose of penicillin?
to block transpeptidase enzyme
this means that peptide cross links can no longer be formed, resulting in weak cell wall
wall will not be able to withstand strong osmotic pressure, and cell will eventually blow up
what does transpeptidase recognize as substrate?
D-Ala
what peptide structure does penicillin resemble?
D-Ala-D-Ala
what family is transpeptidase enzyme a part of?
serine protease family
describe structure of the serine protease active site (2 main components)
catalytic triad (aspartic acid, histamine and serine)
oxyanion hole