Selective Chemotherapy – A new chemotherapeutic drug kills bacteria but not humans. Discuss the possible ways the drug may selectively act on bacterial cells.
Designing a chemotherapeutic drug that selectively targets bacterial cells while sparing human cells is a challenging yet critical goal in medical research. Several strategies can be employed to achieve this selectivity:
Selective Chemotherapy
- Targeting Bacterial Cell Wall Synthesis:
- Bacterial cells typically have a rigid cell wall made of peptidoglycan, a structure absent in human cells. Drugs like beta-lactam antibiotics (e.g., penicillin) target enzymes involved in bacterial cell wall synthesis, disrupting their structural integrity and leading to bacterial cell death.
- Inhibiting Bacterial Protein Synthesis:
- Bacterial and human cells have differences in their ribosomal structure. Antibiotics like aminoglycosides and tetracyclines selectively target bacterial ribosomes, inhibiting protein synthesis and preventing bacterial growth.
- Disrupting Bacterial DNA Replication:
- Compounds that interfere with bacterial DNA replication, such as fluoroquinolones, specifically target enzymes like DNA gyrase that are crucial for bacterial DNA synthesis. Human cells have different enzymes for DNA replication, making them less susceptible to these drugs.
- Targeting Unique Bacterial Metabolic Pathways:
- Exploiting differences in metabolic pathways can lead to selective targeting. For instance, sulfonamide antibiotics interfere with bacterial folic acid synthesis, a pathway that differs from the human host. Human cells obtain folic acid from……..
Selective Chemotherapy
- Targeting Bacterial Cell Wall Synthesis:
- Bacterial cells typically have a rigid cell wall made of peptidoglycan, a structure absent in human cells. Drugs like beta-lactam antibiotics (e.g., penicillin) target enzymes involved in bacterial cell wall synthesis, disrupting their structural integrity and leading to bacterial cell death.
- Inhibiting Bacterial Protein Synthesis:
- Bacterial and human cells have differences in their ribosomal structure. Antibiotics like aminoglycosides and tetracyclines selectively target bacterial ribosomes, inhibiting protein synthesis and preventing bacterial growth.
- Disrupting Bacterial DNA Replication:
- Compounds that interfere with bacterial DNA replication, such as fluoroquinolones, specifically target enzymes like DNA gyrase that are crucial for bacterial DNA synthesis. Human cells have different enzymes for DNA replication, making them less susceptible to these drugs.
- Targeting Unique Bacterial Metabolic Pathways:
- Exploiting differences in metabolic pathways can lead to selective targeting. For instance, sulfonamide antibiotics interfere with bacterial folic acid synthesis, a pathway that differs from the human host. Human cells obtain folic acid from……..
