Antibiotics are substances that slow down or stop the growth of bacteria. They are commonly prescribed medicines, examples include penicillin and amoxicillin. These can be taken to cure the diseases by killing the pathogens, but only cure bacterial diseases and not viral ones.
A bacterial cell damaged by penicillin
Penicillin
Penicillin was the first antibiotic discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming. He noticed that some bacteria he had left in a Petri dish had been killed by the naturally occurring Penicilliummould.
How do antibiotics work?
Antibiotics damage the bacterial cells by inhibiting their cellular processes, but do not damage the host cells. They have the ability to cure some bacterial diseases that would have previously killed many people. Since their introduction, they have had a large influence on the world’s health and death rate.
Different bacteria cause different diseases. One antibiotic may only work against one type of bacteria, or a few types. This means that a range of different antibiotics is needed for the treatment of the whole range of bacterial diseases.
Viral diseases
Viral diseases cannot be cured by antibiotics, as they reproduce inside the host cells. It is very difficult to develop antiviral drugs, as they might damage the host cell whist killing the virus. Antiviral drugs only slow down viral development, and viruses change their antigens quickly which means new drugs have to be generated regularly.