Question

Streptomycin, kenamycin & neomycin binds to smaller sub-unit of prokaryotic ribosomes and cause

• A. Inhibition of protein synthesis
• B. Misreading of the genetic code
• C. Both of the above
• D. Hydrolysis of peptide bonds

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

Both of the above

Streptomycin and neomycin are aminoglycosides that bind to sites on the 30S subunit and cause the misreading of genetic code that leads to abnormal proteins; thus they inhibit peptide initiation and elongation. Translation is the process of protein synthesis on ribosomes using the mRNA template; binding of above-mentioned antibiotics to small ribosomal unit inhibits translation/protein synthesis by the misreading of genetic code. They are broad-spectrum antibiotics that target translation initiation and do not affect the peptide bonds; option D is incorrect. Correct answers are A, B and C.