Question

While in the development phase, you are also required to determine both the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) for your drug. While these values directly relate to the efficacy of the drug against bacteria, they will also be informative for the next stages of development, which include studies to determine effective dosages within a host. The picture depicts the results of an MBC test. Based on these data, the MIC for your drug would be __________ and the MBC would be __________.

16 μg/ml; 8 μg/ml 8 μg/ml; 16 μg/ml 8 μg/ml; 25 μg/ml 16 μg/ml; 25 μg/ml

Answer 1

MBC - Minimum Bactericidal Concentration

MIC - Minimum Inhibitory Concentration

Inhibitory concentration should be always less than the bactericidal concentraion, as it will kill the bacteria completely rather than inhibiting them.

In other words MIC value is lower than MBC value. MIC is the value which will inhibit the growth but MBC is the value which will kill the organism. MBC > MIC.

If the MBC: MIC ratio of a pathogen is between 1:1 to 2:1 or vice versa, the drug is considered to be bactericidal against that pathogen. So from options we have to check for minimum value satisfying this criteria.

Answer: 8 μg/ml; 16 μg/ml