• Question: What do antibiotics do?

    Asked by mariaa.s to Ceri, Marikka, Matt, Rob, Sally on 11 Nov 2014. This question was also asked by H2O, 635anta25.
    • Photo: Marikka Beecroft

      Marikka Beecroft answered on 11 Nov 2014:

      Antibiotics can do two things, kill or stop the growth of bacteria. How the antibiotic does this changes depending which type is being used. They can be used to fight off bacterial infections and treat bacterial diseases.

    • Photo: Sally Cutler

      Sally Cutler answered on 11 Nov 2014:

      Hi,
      Antibiotics are able to inhibit or kill microbes. Ideally you select those that target something unique to the microbe that we don’t have such as the bacterial cell wall that is very different to our cells membrane structures. This way you can kill microbes and have no toxic effects on us.

    • Photo: Robert Hampson

      Robert Hampson answered on 11 Nov 2014:

      They either kill or prevent the reproduction of bacteria without affecting human cells.

      To do this they have to hit targets that are only present or important in bacteria, or targets that look very chemically different to the equivalent human target.

      There are many types that hit bacteria in different ways.

    • Photo: Ceri Dare

      Ceri Dare answered on 11 Nov 2014:

      Antibiotics selectively kill bacteria cells, but not body cells – so if a person has a bacterial infection, they can get rid of the infection. Unfortunately antibiotics also kill helpful bacteria which live in our bodies, like the ones which help us to digest food!

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