Antibiotic Resistance (Under Construction)
Contextualize
The analysis of the problem of "antibiotic resistance" creates diverse opportunities for students to develop core understandings about structure-property relationships in chemistry. Specifically, student learning can be situated in the analysis of structural characteristics of beta-lactams and the chemistry behind bacterial resistance to these types of antibiotics. Beta-lactams are the most widely used class of antibiotics worldwide. Resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics is an alarming and growing phenomenon due to the widespread therapeutic dependence on these efficacious and safe antibiotics. This results in a major global public health challenge. With emerging resistance to antibiotics, there is a need to understand the structure of the drug and the mechanisms of resistance as it can help decide which drugs to prescribe in different scenarios and find ways to overcome antibiotic resistance.
Focus
This infographic summarizes the main systems and components in interaction in the context of antibiotic resistance analyzed during the lesson:
Define
Central Ideas
Molecular structure determines the properties of substances and their function as pharmaceutical drugs.
Beta-lactam antibiotics (e.g., penicillin) are antibiotic drugs whose molecules share a common structural feature that is highly reactive. This structure feature determines their drug function.
Bacterial cell walls consist of a cross-linked biopolymer that plays an important role in bacterial reproduction. The structure this biopolymer is a similar structure to the beta-lactam ring in penicillin and can bind to the same enzyme on the the cell wall.
Since beta-lactam antibiotics bind to this enzyme, it prevents the cross-linking reaction of the biopolymer, which disrupts bacterial cell wall synthesis and can lead to cell death.
In the case of beta-lactam antibiotics, resistance arises when enzymes are produced by bacteria that transform the structure of the antibiotic. This causes the beta-lactam antibiotic to become inactive and stop its antibacterial function.
Core Practices
Analyze the structural features of beta-lactam antibiotics that determine their pharmaceutical function.
Build models that represent the interaction between beta-lactam antibiotics and bacterial enzymes, inhibiting their function and affecting cell reproduction.
Generate explanations based on the chemical mechanism behind bacterial resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics.
Engage in collaborative problem-solving and generate arguments on why beta-lactam antibiotics are both beneficial and problematic for human health.
Systems Thinking Skills
System Composition: Identify relevant entities involved in antibiotic resistance at different levels of granularity and characterize their properties.
System Structure: Examine how major components are organized within and across subsystems in antibiotic resistance.
System Behavior: Identify how the interactions and organization of major components lead to behaviors and system-level properties that change over time.
System Effects: Analyze the social, economic, and environmental effects of antibiotic resistance.
Socio-Environmental Competencies
Identify the health, environmental, economic, and social benefits of using beta-lactam antibiotics.
Evaluate the costs and risks of using beta-lactam antibiotics resulting from the development of bacterial resistance.
Discuss the patterns of behavior that can help reduce the development of bacterial resistance.
Design
The presentation below includes a sequence of content and activities for a proposed x-week lesson (approximately y-minute sessions) that engages students in the development and application of chemical systems thinking to understand antibiotic resistance. The lesson is designed for an introductory organic chemistry lecture course at the university level.
Antibiotic Resistance.pptx
