Case Study 2: We've got' a stop it!

Written by James Sniezek 2002

Incident:

Center for Disease Control: Atlanta

The news isn't good! reported Rashid. The outbreak is spreading. Just last night 1000 more people reported to area hospitals with similar symptoms to the 400 already confirmed cases.
What do we know about the etiological agent? asked Helen.
Lab results indicate that the pathogen is an aerobic microbe. Probably feeding on the carbohydrate reserves of the cells it has infected.
Oh my....thought Helen. That can't be! That means that our current methods for treating this outbreak will be ineffetive. I thought this bug was supposed to be a fermenter!
I agree. chimed in La Tisha. We need a new course of action. Let's look at our options. This parasite needs energy, gets the energy from sugars, and requires oxygen just like the cells of its host. We need to design a drug that kills the parasite while not harming the host. We've got our work cut out if we're going to stop this thing. Get the lab on the phone, we need more tests on..........

Analysis:

Metabolism is a measure of all the chemical reactions going on in a cell at any given time. The chemistry of these reactions require specific meaterials be present in order for the reactions to proceed. Examples of required materials may be sources of energy proteins, or oxygen gas.

What information do we know with repect to the parasites metabolism?

What complicates the treatment of this organism?

What type of additional testing might the laboratory be asked to do?

How might the metabolism of the parasite differ from that of the host?

How might we treat the parasit without killing the host cell?