IDIOT

The quinolones are a family of broad-spectrum antibiotics and a bactericidal drugs, actively killing bacteria.

Fluoroquinolones interfere with bacterial DNA metabolism by the inhibition of two enzymes, Topoisomerase II and Topoisomerase IV. In Gram-negative organisms DNA gyrase is the primary target, whereas in Gram-positive bacteria Topoisomerase IV was recently found to be most affected.

Resistance to quinolones can evolve rapidly, even during a course of treatment. An important precaution is that unnecessary use or abuse of antibiotics can encourage drug-resistant strains of bacteria to develop and proliferate. These drug-resistant strains then become difficult, or even impossible, to treat. Bacteria found in hospitals appear to have become especially resilient, and are causing increasing difficulty for patients and the doctors treating them.