Antimicrobials study sheet
| Antimicrobial | Classification | Lab and identification clues | High-yield clue | Associations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aminoglycosides | Antimicrobial class; Protein-synthesis concept | Susceptibility vocabulary; Enzymatic modification resistance concept; Oxygen-dependent uptake concept | 30S target + aerobic Gram-negative vocabulary. | Gram-negative rod coursework; Synergy vocabulary; Toxicity terms as class facts, not prescribing guidance |
| Antimalarial mechanism concepts | Antiparasitic; Antimalarial concept group; Targets Plasmodium blood stages; Multiple distinct mechanism families | Hemozoin = detoxified heme crystal vocabulary; Endoperoxide bridge activated by heme iron concept; Folate-pathway and mitochondrial electron-transport targets vocabulary | Classic teaching concept: chloroquine-type drugs interfere with hemozoin (heme detoxification) while artemisinins generate iron-activated free radicals inside the parasite. | Plasmodium erythrocytic-stage study association; Heme detoxification pathway concept; Educational only; not prescribing or dosing guidance |
| Azoles | Antifungal class; Membrane synthesis concept | Susceptibility vocabulary; Efflux and target-change concepts; Candida/Aspergillus class associations | Ergosterol synthesis target + fungal resistance vocabulary. | Candida species; Aspergillus vocabulary; C. auris resistance framing |
| Benzimidazole antiparasitics | Antiparasitic; Anthelmintic; Beta-tubulin target; Broad nematode activity vocabulary | Microtubule polymerization inhibition vocabulary; Selective affinity for parasite over host tubulin concept; Impaired glucose uptake in the worm concept | Benzimidazoles selectively bind helminth beta-tubulin, stopping microtubule polymerization and impairing worm glucose uptake. | Intestinal nematode study association; Helminth cytoskeleton concept; Ovicidal/larvicidal vocabulary |
| Beta-lactams | Antimicrobial class; Cell-wall synthesis concept | Susceptibility reporting vocabulary; Beta-lactamase concept; MRSA resistance association as educational vocabulary | Cell-wall synthesis target + beta-lactam ring + beta-lactamase resistance vocabulary. | Penicillins; Cephalosporins; Carbapenem vocabulary; Resistance mechanisms |
| Carbapenems | Beta-lactam; Bactericidal; Binds penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs); Inhibits peptidoglycan cross-linking | Carbapenemase production vocabulary (KPC, NDM, OXA-48, VIM, IMP); Modified carbapenem inactivation concept; MIC-based susceptibility interpretation; Imipenem paired with cilastatin to block renal dehydropeptidase | Beta-lactams stable against many ESBLs, so carbapenem resistance via carbapenemases defines the CRE study concept. | Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) framing; Reserved / last-resort stewardship vocabulary; Broad Gram-positive, Gram-negative, and anaerobe coverage concept |
Assembled from the free PetriKey reference. Every row is published in full on its own reference page, with that page's own sources. Educational study reference only - not medical advice, and not for diagnosis, treatment, dosing, specimen handling, or any clinical decision-making.