Specificity, antimicrobials

The body possesses a number of non-specific antimicrobial systems which are operative at all times against potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Prior contact with the infectious agent has no intrinsic effect on these systems. 

Identify patient and organism factors required to guide the selection of a specific antimicrobial regimen for an individual patient. 

Specific antimicrobial drugs are discussed in chapter Chemotherapeutic agents. ... 

Atropine and other antimuscarinic drugs have been used to provide symptomatic relief in the treatment of urinary urgency caused by minor inflammatory bladder disorders (Table 8-3). However, specific antimicrobial therapy is essential in bacterial cystitis. In the human urinary bladder, M2 and M3 receptors are expressed predominantly with the M3 subtype mediating direct activation of contraction. As in intestinal smooth muscle, the M2 subtype appears to act indirectly by inhibiting relaxation by norepinephrine and epinephrine. 

Atropine and other antimuscarinic drugs have been used to provide symptomatic relief in the treatment of urinary urgency caused by minor inflammatory bladder disorders (Table 8-3). However, specific antimicrobial therapy is essential in bacterial cystitis. 

Board RG and Euller R (1974) Non-specific antimicrobial defences of the avian egg, embryo and neonate. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society 49, 15 9. 

A widely used biocide and preservation product is formaldehyde. Solutions of formaldehyde in water, called formalin, were used for disinfection and conservation, for example, of biological samples for display. Bound formaldehyde is released in small amounts from common easy-care and durable press finishes (Chapter 5). Therefore these finishes include - at least until they are washed - a small antimicrobial side effect. This can also be true for some quaternary compounds, for example wet fastness improvers and softeners. But for more effective requirements specific antimicrobial finishes are necessary. 

Shigella. Mild disease requires no specific antimicrobial therapy but toxic shigellosis with high fever should be treated with ciprofloxacin or amoxicillin by mouth. 

Antimicrobial agents are used frequently in horses with gastrointestinal disorders but in most cases their use is empirical. For some infectious disorders of the alimentary tract, there are specific antimicrobial treatments, including ... 

Three classes of antimycotic antibiotic are available polyenes, azoles and nucleoside analogs. In addition, non-specific antimicrobial agents such as povidone iodine, chlorhexidine and silver sulfadiazine can be adapted for ophthalmic use. 

The failure of host defenses may be a critical factor in the pathogenicity of enterococci. In immunocompromised patients or patients with valvular heart disease or a prosthetic heart valve, there is justification to provide specific antimicrobial activity against enterococci. Ampicillin or other penicillins that are active against... 

It is envisioned that the defensive systems of plants include preformed physical and chemical barriers as well as inducible defenses that also can be either physical or chemical. An example of an inducible defense is the synthesis of specific antimicrobial compounds such as phytoalexins or phytoanticipins. However, in other instances plants react to pests by developing long-lasting, broad-spectrum systemic resistance to later attacks by pathogens. This type of resistance is referred to as systemic acquired resistance, and was discovered in tobacco by Ross (1961). This form of resistance is almost universally... 

A general limitation associated with broad-spectrum MIAs is the inconclusive nature of a positive test result. Without the use of a secondary diagnostic assay, it is difficult to attribute a positive response as being elicited by a specific antimicrobial class. More recently, post-screen classification methods selective for the most commonly detected antimicrobial classes (P-lactam, sulfonamide, and tetracyclines) have been described " in direct combination with the PremiTest assay applicable for a range of tissues, milk, egg, and honey. 

Tryptanthrin (53) is a highly specific antimicrobial agent active against dermatophytes, with an effect similar to that of griseofulvin against Trichophyton mentagrophytes. Its antibiotic activity depends on the composition of the growth medium. This alkaloid is also the active principle in the leaves of Strobilanthes... 

Antimicrobial dressings can be produced by making use of known synthetic and natural antimicrobial agents. A wide range of antimicrobial agents are available and some specific antimicrobials that are exclusively used in wound dressings are ... 

Szabo 1, Vonhaz G, Pallag A, Nemeth S (2006) In vitro specific antimicrobial properties of Hibiscus trionum L. extractive solutions. In Proceedings of 4th conference of the association for medicined emd momatic plants of South-East European countries. la i, RomMa, Alma Mater, Sibiu, 28-31 May 2006... 

Enzyme immunoassays, in a card-test format, are also used for screening carcasses by testing of urine for specific antimicrobial residues such as sulfadimidine and chloramphenicol. The sol particle immunoassay uses adsorption of specific antibodies to dyed colloidal particles (e.g., carbon) as a mechanism for making directly visible the presence of residues (i.e., antigen) in the sample. A lateral flow membrane device is used to identify residue-positive samples through the absence of color formation at the test capture zone (Figure 5). 

Milk samples are screened for the presence of antimicrobial residues with inhibition tests in different formats and using a variety of test organisms. Specific antimicrobial identification tests, based on more extensive inhibition tests, enzymatic tests, immunoassays, and receptor assays (Table 3) are also used for milk samples. These tests show considerable... 

The main applications of proteins are in the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. The specific antimicrobial properties of e-poly-L-lysine promoted its utilization in the food industry in Japan, whereas poly-a,p-aspartic acid is mainly used as a polydispersant in detergents. ... 

YAMAicHi Y, DUiQOU s, SHAKHNOViCH E A and WALDOR M K (2009) Targeting the replication initiator of the second Vibrio chromosome towards generation of Vibrionaceae-specific antimicrobial agents, PLoS Pathog, 5, el000663. 

Crespo, E., Cristescu, S.M., de Ronde, H., Kuijper, S., Kolk, A.H.J.,Anthony,R.M., Harren, F.J.H. (2011) Proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry detects rapid changes in volatile metabolite emission by Mycobacterium smegmatis after the addition of specific antimicrobial agents. Journal of Microbiological Mehods, 86, 8-15. 

Some active substances or excipients have an antimicrobial effect not only through reducing the water activity, but also through a specific antimicrobial mechanism. The best-known example is propylene glycol, but also ethanol, local anaesthetics, chlorpromazine hydrochloride, promethazine hydrochloride and essential oils exhibit a specific antimicrobial effect. In addition, the combination of weak antimicrobial effects of disodium edetate, borax, and boric acid appeared to justify prolongation of the shelf life of non-preserved eye drops over the standard limit of 24 h [48]. 

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