What effect do you think lysozymepenicillin has on the treat

What effect do you think lysozyme/penicillin has on the treatment of acid-fast microbes?

Solution

Acid-fast microbes are those micro-organisms which contain a very strong and dense cell wall. This cell wall/membrane contain mycolic acid in them. The strength of these outer membranous covering prevent these microbes from colorization process and discrete staining procedures such as Ziehl-Neelsen staining. The staning process of these microbes are particularly harsh in nature. Examples of such microbes include Mycobacterium spp. etc.

Importantly, these microbses are highly resistant to many hydrolyzing enzymes such as lysozymes. Also, these acid-fast microbes are essentially resistant to antibiotics which prevent cell-wall synthesis and peptidoglycan breakdown such as penicillin. Since these degrading enzymes and antibiotics are not able to degrade these acid-fast microbes, application of lysozymes and penicillin will have no significant impact on integrity of these microbes. This is why more robust and harsh procedures are performed when staining these types of microbes. This also makes the clinical basis of antibiotic and hydrolyzing enzyme resistance by infectious microbes such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and prevent their eradication from a pateint.

Thus, application of lysozyme/penicillin will have no effect on acid-fast microbes.