Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Essay

Unlike many environmental bacteria, Pseudomonas aeruginosa has a remarkable capacity to cause disease in susceptible hosts. It has the ability to adapt to and thrive in many ecological niches, from water and soil to plant and animal tissues. The bacterium is capable of utilizing a wide range of organic compounds as food sources, thus giving it an exceptional ability to

Cephalexin and Gentamicin would be effective since they are equally sensitive to the pseudomonas aeruginosa microbe which implies they will kill the microbe and work against the bacteria.

The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) has recently noted several model antibiotic-resistant bacteria strains with redesigned capabilities in pathogenesis, transmission and resistance. These several strains, Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter species, have been given the acronym-based title of the ESKAPE Pathogens. These strains of bacteria compromise one of the biggest threats faced by physicians today not because of the infectious and devastating illnesses they lead to, but because of their ability to resist antibiotics in the healthcare setting. Failure for industries, academia and government to cooperate and develop research/development operations has left healthcare providers one-step behind in the fight against these new brands of infectious diseases. A lack of research/development operations has left the healthcare industry with antiquated antibiotics no longer capable of targeting and eradicating these microorganisms in human systems.

aeruginosa has a large genome at 6.26 Mb, which codes for 5,697 genes, the bacteria measures 0.5 to 0.8 µm by 1.5 to 3.0 µm. It can often be found growing were nutrients are limited, like distilled water, it can use more than seventy-five different organic compounds. P. aeruginosa is one of the top three nosocomial infections, resulting in almost 10% of all hospital-acquired infections, with a blood poisoning mortality rate of nearly 50%. This opportunistic pathogen can cause pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and blood poisoning in wounded patients. The most serious complication of P. aeruginosa is cystic fibrosis, a respiratory tract

The bacteria that was contained within Unknown tube #12 is believed to be Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Figure 1. The bacteria tested to be Gram Stain negative, producing a pink, red color retained from the staining process. When the species of bacteria was plated on nutrient media, the cells produced an irregular and spreading configuration as shown in Figure 2. This same plating test provided the margins and elevation, lobate and hilly, respectively. The specimen was stabbed in a Fluid Thioglycollate Medium (FTM) tube using an inoculated loop of the bacteria. The results of this experimentation indicate the type of oxygen requirement of the bacteria. The test found the bacteria to be aerobic as colonies of the bacteria began to form along the top of the FTM tube (Manual 2017).

Since antibiotics, such as penicillin, became widely available in the 1940s, they have been called miracle drugs. They have been able to eliminate bacteria without significantly harming the other cells of the host. Now with each passing year, bacteria that are immune to antibiotics have become more and more common. This turn of events presents us with an alarming problem. Strains of bacteria that are resistant to all prescribed antibiotics are beginning to appear. As a result, diseases such as tuberculosis and penicillin-resistant gonorrhea are reemerging on a worldwide scale (1).

Figure 4.41 of the AURA5 report shows that in private hospitals settings S. pneumoniae is 25.4% resistant to erythromycin and 26.2% resistant to tetracyclines. In contrast, the AMH6 states that S. pneumoniae is sensitive to both erythromycin and tetracyclines (both doxycycline and minomycin). This discrepancy arises because the AMH6 reports the average resistance while the AURA report states resistance patterns across different clinical settings. Overall, the resistance of S. pneumoniae to these antibiotics is less than 25%. Therefore, the AMH6 lists S. pneumoniae as susceptible to these antibiotics.

P. aeruginosa is the dominant pathogen in CF airways, although other microorganisms may play a prominent role in the pathogenesis of the disease(4). P. aeruginosa infects 80% of CF patients chronically by late adolescence(4). P. aeruginosa possesses a massive genetic diversity and numerous features that are responsible for its pathogenicity and enable it to persist in the environment(4). P. aeruginosa exists in the environment as a single motile bacteria; designated as “non-mucoid form” of the microorganism(4). As colonization proceeds, alteration of the growth pattern takes place; hence improving its survival capacity(4). In the “mucoid form”, P. aeruginosa grows forming complex multicellular mucosa attached aggregates (bacterial biofilm)

Fluoroquinolones(FQs) antibiotics were first introduced in the US market in the 1980s.1 Since their introduction, FQs have been used extensively to treat a wide range of infections. 2 Initially, these agents were used to treat infections caused by gram negative bacteria. However, newer agents in this class have gained further coverage of gram positive bacteria, atypical pathogens and even anaerobes. 3 FQs have a distinctive mechanism of action as they are the only class of antimicrobial agents in clinical use that are direct inhibitors of bacterial DNA synthesis. 3

This is because the choice of antibiotic also depends on the site and extent of infection as well as local resistance patterns. These resistance patterns would need to be targeted specifically in order for the biofilm to be eradicated, many studies have portrayed that ‘combination therapy’ is the most efficient way of targeting biofilm related structures. For example, with CF patients a combination of drugs ivacaftor and lumacaftor. These are systematic protein modulators and work together to target the CFTR gene by opening pathways to specific protein channels, this allows salts and fluids to move in so the biofilm forming mucus can be removed from the

The occurrence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens has gradually become a cause for serious concern that impends the effective prevention and treatment with regard to nosocomial infections. With this alarming cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recently identified antimicrobial resistance as an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all government sectors and society (Bassetti, Ginocchio, & Mikulska M, 2011). The most common and serious MDR pathogens have been comprehended within the acronym “ESKAPE,” – Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter spp. (Howard, O'Donoghue, Feeney, & Sleator, 2012).

aeruginosa infections [79]. Following that, in 1974, Haas et al reported an investigation into the possible prophylactic effect of R-type pyocin in the prevention of the lethal effect of subsequent challenge with P. aeruginosa [80]. In this study they showed that mice were protected against lethal intraperitoneal challenge with P. aeruginosa when a single injection of R-type pyocins was administered one hour before the challenge. The protective effect lasted for at least four days. Although these studies illustrate the potential of R-type pyocins as a novel therapeutic, they were limited in scope and the authors did not quantify the assays, generate dose-response curves, or optimize time and route of administration. In 1975, Rosamund Williams studied the systemic and topical effects of purified R-type pyocins (and F-type and S-type pyocins) on P. aeruginosa systemic and burn infections, respectively, in

The main causes of the problem are two pharmacological issues: (a) wide-spectrum antibiotics and (b) compliance. Wide-spectrum antibiotics are widely used to treat infections, either those caused by several different species or those for which diagnosis is too difficult or takes too much time. Of course, wide spectrum promises a wide range of clinical uses and sales but consequently contributes to resistance as it applies selective pressure. Compliance is another issue that has many aftermaths upon antimicrobial resistance. Patients often either miss drug doses, both by mistake and deliberately, or decide to stop the treatment prematurely when they feel better. In both cases, pathogens which are exposed to subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics, survive and that consequently results in the greater chances of acquiring resistance. (Sosa et at., 2010)

The question of antibiotic resistance is a growing phenomenon in contemporary society and modern medicine; it pertains to pathogenic organisms and is one of the most eminent issues of public health in the twenty-first century. Though resistant genes are ancient, its increasing prevalence poses a threat. It demands a greater need for antibiotic therapies. New resistance mechanisms may spread globally and limit our ability to treat disease and lead to a giant hole in the pillars of modern medicine.

The development of bacterial resistance left one to think how the human body reacts to antibiotics and the more antibiotic used the quicker resistance occur. It is important that we understand how bacteria are classified, their structure, physical appearance, ability to grow in the human body, their relationship in response to antibiotics and the immune system (Fraise and Bradley, 2009). Chalmers and Straud (2006) explained that in order to understand bacteria behavior it is vital to consider the chain of infection whilst some organisms have