Why are antibiotics ineffective at destroying viruses?
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1. Why are antibacterials not used to destroy viruses? What is the difference between bacteria and viruses that cause this to happen.
2. Why is the blood brain barrier considered both good and bad?
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Solution Summary
This solution will discuss why the blood brain barrier is considered both good and bad. It will also discuss why antibacterials are not effective at killing viruses. The difference between a virus and a bacterium is also discussed.
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1. Antibacterials are not used to destroy viruses because viruses are not considered to be living organisms. A bacterium can reproduce on its own, has its own DNA or RNA and has a metabolism. Antibiotics are designed to kill the bacteria by interfering with its metabolic processes. Some, like penicillin are designed to disrupt cell wall formation, some interfere with glycolysis, or protein formation, or some other vital metabolic component.
Unlike bacteria, viruses have no metabolism and cannot reproduce on their own, as previously mentioned, nor can they reproduce on their own.Neither do they have a metabolism. A ...
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