How do you explain to your friend why tetracycline treated her infection but penicillin did not?
A) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no lipopolysaccharide so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of phospholipid synthesis. However, the organism carries out protein synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
B) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no proteins so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of protein synthesis. However, the organism carries out peptidoglycan synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
C) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no cell wall so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of peptidoglycan synthesis. However, the organism carries out protein synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
D) Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a Gram-positive cell, so has a peptidoglycan layer too thick to be impacted by penicillin. It can only be treated with tetracycline, which is a much stronger antibiotic.
E) Mycoplasma pneumoniae is an RNA virus so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of DNA synthesis. However, tetracycline which interferes with DNA replication, so destroys this infectious agent.

Question

How do you explain to your friend why tetracycline treated her infection but penicillin did not?
A) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no lipopolysaccharide so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of phospholipid synthesis. However, the organism carries out protein synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
B) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no proteins so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of protein synthesis. However, the organism carries out peptidoglycan synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
C) Mycoplasma pneumoniae has no cell wall so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of peptidoglycan synthesis. However, the organism carries out protein synthesis, so is affected by tetracycline, which interferes with this process.
D) Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a Gram-positive cell, so has a peptidoglycan layer too thick to be impacted by penicillin. It can only be treated with tetracycline, which is a much stronger antibiotic.
E) Mycoplasma pneumoniae is an RNA virus so is not impacted by penicillin, an inhibitor of DNA synthesis. However, tetracycline which interferes with DNA replication, so destroys this infectious agent.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Mycoplasma pneumoniae does not have a cell wall, which means it is not impacted by penicillin, an antibiotic that targets the peptidoglycan synthesis of the cell wall. However, Mycoplasma pneumoniae carries out protein synthesis, which is affected by tetracycline. Tetracycline interferes with the binding of aminoacyl-tRNA to the A site of the ribosome, which prevents protein synthesis and ultimately kills the bacteria.

How Do You Explain to Your Friend Why Tetracycline Treated