BSC 283/283L Microbiology - Antimicrobial Drugs

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to antimicrobial drugs, their mechanisms, and their applications in treating infections.

Antiviral Drugs

Medications that specifically target viruses during their replication cycle.

Eukaryotic Pathogens

Organisms, such as fungi and protozoa, that can cause disease in humans and are more complex than bacteria.

Ergosterol

A sterol found in fungal cell membranes, not present in human cells, that is targeted by certain antifungal drugs.

Polyenes

A class of antifungal drugs that directly interact with ergosterol, causing cell membrane leakage.

Echinocandin drugs

Antifungal agents that inhibit the enzyme responsible for synthesizing beta-glucan, affecting fungal cell wall integrity.

Antimalarial Drugs

Medications targeting the Plasmodium species that cause malaria, categorized into several classes.

Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACT)

Antimalarial drugs that combine an artemisinin derivative with nonartemisinin drugs to combat resistant strains.

Nitrazoxanide

An antiprotozoan drug that blocks anaerobic energy metabolism in certain protozoa.

Antihelminthic Drugs

Medications used to treat infections caused by parasitic worms, including various broad-spectrum agents.

Remdesivir

The first antiviral drug approved by the FDA for the treatment of COVID-19.