Chemotherapy
•The use of drugs to treat a disease
•Selective toxicity: A drug that kills
harmful microbes without damaging
the host
Antibiotic/Antimicrobial
•Antibiotic: Chemical produced
by a microorganismthat kills or
inhibits the growth of another
microorganism
•Antimicrobial agent: Chemical
that kills or inhibits the growth of
microorganisms
Microbial
Sources
of
Antibiotics
Antibiotic Spectrum of Activity
•No antibiotic is effective against all
microbes
Mechanisms of
Antimicrobial Action
•Bacteria have their own enzymes
for
–Cell wall formation
–Protein synthesis
–DNA replication
–RNA synthesis
–Synthesis of essential
metabolites
Mechanisms of
Antimicrobial Action
•Viruses use host enzymes inside
host cells
•Fungi and protozoa have own
eukaryotic enzymes
•The more similar the pathogen and
host enzymes, the more side
effectsthe antimicrobials will have
Modes of Antimicrobial Action
•Penicillin (over 50 compounds)
–Share 4-sided ring (blactam ring)
•Natural penicillins
•Narrow range of action
•Susceptible to penicillinase (b
lactamase)
Antibacterial Antibiotics
Inhibitors of Cell Wall Synthesis
•Cephalosporins
–2
nd
, 3
rd
, and
4
th
generations
more effective
against gram-
negatives
Other Inhibitors of Cell Wall
Synthesis
Figure 20.9
•Polypeptide antibiotics
–Bacitracin
•Topical application
•Against gram-positives
–Vancomycin
•Glycopeptide
•Important "last line" against
antibiotic resistant S. aureus
Other Inhibitors of Cell Wall
Synthesis
Other Inhibitors of Cell Wall
Synthesis
•Antibiotics
effective against
Mycobacteria:
interfere with
mycolic acid
synthesis or
incorporation
–Isoniazid (INH)
–Ethambutol
•Broad spectrum, toxicity problems
•Examples
–Chloramphenicol (bone marrow)
–Aminoglycosides: Streptomycin,
neomycin, gentamycin (hearing, kidneys)
–Tetracyclines (Rickettsias & Chlamydia;
GI tract)
–Macrolides: Erythromycin (gram +, used
in children)
Inhibitors of Protein Synthesis
•Polymyxin B (Gram negatives)
–Topical
–Combined with bacitracin and
neomycin (broad spectrum) in over-
the-counter preparation
Injury to the Plasma Membrane
•Rifamycin
–Inhibits RNA synthesis
–Antituberculosis
•Quinolones and fluoroquinolones
–Ciprofloxacin
–Inhibits DNA gyrase
–Urinary tract infections
Inhibitors of Nucleic Acid
Synthesis
Antifungal Drugs
•Fungi are
eukaryotes
•Have unique
sterols in their cell
walls
•Pathogenic fungi
are often outside
the body
Antiviral Drugs
•Viruses are composed of nucleic
acid, protein capsid, and host
membrane containing virus proteins
•Viruses live inside host cells and
use many host enzymes
•Some viruses have unique
enzymes for DNA/RNA synthesis or
protein cutting in virus assembly
Figure 20.16a
Antiviral Drugs
Nucleoside and Nucleotide Analogs
Figure 20.16a
•Interferonsprevent spread of viruses
to new cells (Viral hepatitis)
•Natural products of the immune
system in viral infections
Antiviral Drugs
Enzyme Inhibitors
Antiprotozoan Drugs
•Protozoa are
eukaryotic cells
•Many drugs are
experimental and
their mode of
action is unknown
Measuring Antimicrobial
Sensitivity
•E Test
•MIC: Minimal
inhibitory
concentration
Measuring Antimicrobial
Sensitivity: Disk Diffusion
Figure 20.20
Antibiotic Resistance
Antimicrobial Resistance
•Relative or complete lack of
effect of antimicrobial against a
previously susceptiblemicrobe
•Increase in MIC
•Enzymatic destruction
of drug
•Prevention of
penetration of drug
•Alteration of antibiotic
or target site
•Rapid ejection of the
drug
Mechanisms of Antibiotic
Resistance
Antibiotic Selection for
Resistant Bacteria
What Factors Promote
Antimicrobial Resistance?
•Exposure to sub-optimal levels
of antimicrobial
•Exposure to microbes carrying
resistance genes
Inappropriate Antimicrobial
Use
•Prescription not taken correctly
•Antibiotics for viral infections
•Antibiotics sold without medical
supervision
•Spread of resistant microbes in
hospitals due to lack of hygiene
Inappropriate Antimicrobial
Use
•Lack of quality control in
manufacture or outdated
antimicrobial
•Inadequate surveillance or
defective susceptibility assays
•Poverty or war
•Use of antibiotics in foods
Antibiotics in Foods
•Antibiotics are used in animal feeds
and sprayed on plants to prevent
infection and promote growth
•Multi drug-resistant Salmonella
typhihas been found in 4 states in
18 people who ate beef fed
antibiotics
Consequences of
Antimicrobial Resistance
•Infections
resistant to
available
antibiotics
•Increased
cost of
treatment
Multi-Drug Resistant TB
MRSA “mer-sah”
•Methicillin-Resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
•Most frequent nosocomial
(hospital-acquired) pathogen
•Usually resistant to several
other antibiotics
Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci
Vancomycin Use USA
Proposals to Combat
Antimicrobial Resistance
•Speed development of new
antibiotics
•Track resistance data nationwide
•Restrict antimicrobial use
•Direct observed dosing (TB)
Proposals to Combat
Antimicrobial Resistance
•Use more narrow spectrum
antibiotics
•Use antimicrobial cocktails
•Antimicrobial peptides
–Broad spectrum antibiotics from
plants and animals
•Squalamine (sharks)
•Protegrin (pigs)
•Magainin (frogs)
The Future of
Chemotherapeutic Agents
•Antisense agents
–Complementary DNA or peptide
nucleic acids that binds to a
pathogen's virulence gene(s) and
prevents transcription
The Future of
Chemotherapeutic Agents