Why Would an Efflux Pump for Penicillin?

Drug efflux is a key mechanism of resistance in Gram-negative bacteria. These systems pump solutes out of the cell. Efflux pumps allow the microorganisms to regulate their internal environment by removing toxic substances, including antimicrobial agents, metabolites and quorum sensing signal molecules.

What is the purpose of efflux pump?

Efflux pumps are required for colonization and dissemination during host infection by many pathogenic bacteria and can help bacteria extrude innate host defences. This is particularly clear in Neisseria, which uses RND efflux pumps to extrude host antimicrobial fatty acids and antimicrobial peptides.

Which antibiotics can live through efflux pump?

RND family efflux pumps have tripartite organization and are the major contributors to intrinsic antibiotic resistance in GNB, which expel a broad spectrum of antibiotics and biocides, including fluoroquinolones, β-lactams, tetracycline and linezolid.