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TECHNOLOGY: GLOSSARY  GLOSSARY Amino acid: The building blocks of all proteins. There are 20 different kinds of amino acids. A protein consists of a specific sequence of amino acids. Amphipathic: Refers to a molecule that has both hydrophilic (water-soluble) and hydrophobic (water-insoluble) groups. Antibiotic: A substance such as penicillin or tetracycline that is able to kill or inhibit the growth of certain microorganisms. Antibiotic resistance: The state achieved when bacteria overcome the mechanism used by an antibiotic to kill or inhibit bacterial growth. Bacteremia: Presence of viable bacteria in the circulating blood: usually a sign of infection. Bacterium: An individual, microscopic organism composed of a single cell that contains no nucleus. Many, but not all, bacteria cause disease. Bactolysin: A single-agent antibiotic peptide designed by Micrologix to be used against sensitive and drug-resistant microorganisms responsible for infections. Biotechnology: The use of living organisms or their products to make or modify a substance. Biotechnology includes recombinant DNA techniques, also known as genetic engineering. Campylobacter: A genus of Gram-negative bacteria, which can be a source of gastrointestinal disease associated with food poisoning in humans. Catheter: A flexible tube used for draining fluids from or injecting fluids into the body. Cationic: Refers to a positively-charged molecule. Cell: The basic subunit of any living organism. A cell is the simplest unit that can exist as an independent living system. Chromosomes: The physical structures that carry the genetic information in the form of genes. Chromosomes are composed of DNA and proteins. In many cells, chromosomes are located in the nucleus. Each human cell has 23 pairs of chromosomes. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid): The substance of heredity. DNA is a large molecule that carries the genetic information necessary for all cellular functions, including the building of proteins. DNA is composed of nucleotides joined together, each nucleotide being comprised of the sugar deoxyribose, a phosphate and one of four bases: adenine, thymine, guanine or cytosine. The genetic information of the DNA is contained in the sequence of bases along the molecule. The DNA molecule can make exact copies of itself thereby passing on the genetic information to the daughter cells when the cell divides. E. coli: Short for Escherichia coli, a bacterium that normally resides in the human intestine. Enhancin: A class of cationic peptides being developed by Micrologix to work in combination with conventional antibiotics to restore the antibiotic's activity against drug-resistant bacteria and/or extend the effectiveness of conventional antibiotics over a broader range of applications. Enterobacteriaceae: A large family of Gram-negative bacteria that includes a number of serious pathogens of humans, such as E. coli. Enterococcus: Genus of Gram-positive bacteria with thick wall composition and spherical shape. Formerly a species of Streptococcus, includes E. faecalis, E. faecium and E. durans. Fungus: A member of a class of relatively primitive vegetative organisms, some of which can cause disease in humans. Fungi include mushrooms, yeasts, rusts, molds and smuts. Gene: A unit of genetic material (DNA) that carries the directions that a cell uses to perform a specific function, such as making a particular protein. Genetic engineering: The manipulation of an organism's genetic endowment by introducing or eliminating specific genes through modern molecular biology techniques. GISA: Short for glycopeptide intermediate-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The first reports of S. aureus infections with decreased susceptibility to the glycopeptide antibiotics, vancomycin and teicoplanin, occurred in 1997. Resistance progression from GISA is expected to be the emergence of glycopeptide-resistant S. aureus strains that the medical community has long feared. Glycopeptide: Refers to a class of antibiotics, including teicoplanin and vancomycin, having activity against most Gram-positive organisms. Gonococcus: Common name for the bacterium, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, which causes gonorrhea. Gram-negative: A classification for identifying a bacterium by its inability to hold a purple dye when stained by Gram's stain. Gram-positive: A classification for identifying a bacterium by its ability to hold a purple dye when stained by Gram's stain. Infection: Growth of a disease-causing organism within the body. Infectious disease: Any of many illnesses caused by microorganisms that can be transmitted from person to person, from organism to organism, or from the environment to a person/organism. In vitro: Means literally, "in glass"; a biologic or biochemical process made to occur outside a living organism. Traditionally this refers to experiments performed in a test tube. In vivo: Means literally, "in life"; a biologic or biochemical process that occurs or is observed occurring within the bodies of living organisms. Medical device: An instrument or apparatus which is intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease. Membrane: A thin layer of tissue which covers a surface, lines a cavity or divides a space or organ. Meningococcus: Common name for the bacterium, Neisseria meningitidis, which causes meningitis. MIC (minimum inhibitory concentration): The lowest level of an antibiotic that is required to inhibit the growth of bacteria in vitro. Microbe: (See Microorganism) Microorganism (or microbe): Minute organisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa. Some microorganisms can cause disease in humans. Molecule: The smallest amount of a specific chemical substance that can exist alone. To break a molecule down into its constituent atoms is to change its character. A molecule of water, for instance, reverts to oxygen and hydrogen. MRSA: Short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: a notorious hospital and community-acquired pathogen that has the characteristics of multi-drug resistance, virulence and toxicity. It is estimated that 50% of all S. aureus in many North American hospitals are MRSA. In most instances, MRSA can only be killed by vancomycin. Mutation: A change in the composition of DNA that is often reflected in a change in the protein for which the DNA codes. Nucleic acids: Large, naturally occurring molecules composed of chemical building blocks known as nucleotides. There are two kinds of nucleic acids: DNA and RNA. Nucleotide: A subunit of DNA and RNA. It includes one phosphate molecule, one sugar molecule (deoxyribose in DNA, ribose in RNA) and a single pyrimidine or purine base. Nucleus: A membrane-bound subcellular structure that contains a cell's genetic material. Organism: An individual living thing. Pathogen: A specific causative agent of a disease, such as a bacterium or virus. Penicillin: Any of many natural or partly synthetic antibiotics that work against a wide range of Gram-positive bacteria (such as streptococci) and some Gram-negative bacteria (such as meningococci). Penicillin, which originally was produced by fungi in the genus Penicillium, works by interfering with a microbe's ability to make a cell wall. Peptides: Any of a class of molecules comprised of up to about 100 amino acids, peptides can also form the basic building blocks of proteins. Pharmacodynamics: The study of the action of drugs on the living organism. It includes mechanisms of action of drugs and their MIC. Pharmacokinetics: The study of the methods by which the body absorbs, distributes, breaks down and eliminates drugs. In other words, the study of how a drug is handled within the body. Pharmacology: The branch of science that studies the composition, uses and effects of drugs on the body. Pneumococcus: The common name for the bacterium, Streptococcus pneumoniae that causes pneumonia and meningitis. Protectins: A class of cationic peptides under development by Micrologix which act as preservatives to inhibit bacterial growth in foods and packaged goods. Proteins: A molecule made up of a number of amino acids arranged in a specific order determined by a genetic code. Proteins are essential for all life processes. Protozoa: A class of parasites being small, unicellular organisms. Pseudomonas: Genus of Gram-negative bacteria. They are rod-shaped and motile, possessing one or more polar flagella. Several species produce characterisitc water-soluble fluorescent pigments. They are found in soil and water. Rational drug design: Using knowledge of a receptor's molecular structure to design a drug that will act on that receptor in a specific way. Recombinant DNA: Genetically engineered DNA prepared in vitro by cutting up DNA molecules and splicing together specific DNA fragments usually from more than one species of organism. Staphylococcus: A genus of Gram-positive bacteria that includes pathogens, such as S. aureus, that most commonly infect the skin and mucous membranes. Streptococcus: A genus of bacteria that includes important pathogens of humans such as those that cause streptococcal sore throat and infective endocarditis. Streptomyces: Genus of Gram-positive spore forming bacteria that grow slowly in soil or water as a braching filamentous mycelium similar to that of fungi. Important as the source of many antibiotics, for example streptomycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, macrolides. Systemic: Not localized in a particular place of the body; an infection disseminated widely through the body is said to be systemic. Topical: The route of administration of a drug that is applied directly to the part being treated (e.g., to the skin or eye). Toxins: Agents produced by microorganisms and plants that normally are very damaging to mammalian cells. Vancomycin: An antimicrobial drug originally made from the fungus Streptomyces orientalis that is used against Gram-positive bacteria (e.g., staphylococci) that are resistant to other antibiotics. Considered to be the "antibiotic of last resort" in treating drug-resistant Gram-positive bacterial infections. Virus: Obligate intracellular parasite that must use a host cell's systems in order to replicate and proliferate. Some viruses cause infections in people. VRE: Short for vancomycin-resistant enterococci; a form of intestinal bacteria that is not sensitive to the antibiotic vancomycin. The emergence of VRE strains in the 1990s has led to infections that are virtually impossible to treat. Resulting enterococcal bacteremia has a 55% mortality rate. [ TOP ]
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