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Antimicrobial peptides have been demonstrated to kill Gram negative and Gram positive bacteria, [1] enveloped viruses, fungi and even transformed or cancerous cells. [2] Unlike the majority of conventional antibiotics it appears that antimicrobial peptides frequently destabilize biological membranes , can form transmembrane channels , and may ...
Bacteriophages, also known as phages, infect and kill bacteria primarily during lytic cycles. [201] [200] Phages insert their DNA into the bacterium, where it is transcribed and used to make new phages, after which the cell will lyse, releasing new phage that are able to infect and destroy further bacteria of the same strain. [200]
Bacitracin is a polypeptide antibiotic derived from a bacterium, Bacillus subtilis, and acts against bacteria through the inhibition of cell wall synthesis. [6] It does this by inhibiting the removal of phosphate from lipid compounds, thus deactivating its function to transport peptidoglycan; the main component of bacterial cell membranes, to the microbial cell wall.
The main classes of antimicrobial agents are disinfectants (non-selective agents, such as bleach), which kill a wide range of microbes on non-living surfaces to prevent the spread of illness, antiseptics (which are applied to living tissue and help reduce infection during surgery), and antibiotics (which destroy microorganisms within the body).
β-Lactam antibiotics are indicated for the prevention and treatment of bacterial infections caused by susceptible organisms. At first, β-lactam antibiotics were mainly active only against gram-positive bacteria, yet the recent development of broad-spectrum β-lactam antibiotics active against various gram-negative organisms has increased their usefulness.
Antibiotics are some of the most powerful tools in medicine. They’re prescribed to treat a variety of infections caused by bacteria, such as urinary tract infections, most ear infections, strep ...
Phages destroy bacterial cell walls and membrane through the use of lytic proteins which kill bacteria by making many holes from the inside out. [272] Bacteriophages can even possess the ability to digest the biofilm that many bacteria develop that protect them from antibiotics in order to effectively infect and kill bacteria. Bioengineering ...
A classic example of this effect is the interaction between β-lactams, which damage the bacteria cell membrane, and aminoglycosides, which inhibit protein synthesis. [1] The damage dealt to the cell wall by β-lactams allows more aminoglycoside molecules to be taken up into the cell than would otherwise be possible, enhancing cell damage. [1]