Question

For some gram-negative bacterial infections, antibiotic treatment can cause a more severe reaction than that caused by the base infection. this is often due to the release of endotoxin from the cell. endotoxin, or lps, is harmless in intact pathogens but can cause dangerously low blood pressure and high fever once released. which antibiotic here would you recommend against a bacterial pathogen that encodes lps

Answer 1

I would recommend tetracycline or chloramphenicol. These are broad spectrum antibiotics that are also effective against gram negative bacteria. They work by inhibiting protein synthesis in the bacteria. They therefore also impede bacteria reproduction and also the encoding of bacterial LPSs. They do not cause death/lysis of the bacteria hence retain their integrity, thence avoiding endotoxin shock due to release of endotoxins in the blood.