Final answer:
The correct answer is E) Both A and C, which suggests that toxicity in antimicrobial drugs is due to structural and metabolic differences between the host and the pathogen, enabling selective toxicity.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct answer to the question regarding toxicity is E) Both A and C. Toxicity in the context of antimicrobial drugs refers to the ability of these drugs to harm the target microbe without causing harm to the host. This concept is known as selective toxicity. Selective toxicity takes advantage of structural and metabolic differences between the host (often human cells) and the pathogen.
- A) It takes advantage of structural difference between host and pathogen: Antibacterial compounds often exploit the differences between prokaryotic bacteria and eukaryotic human cells, for instance by attacking the bacterial cell wall which is not present in human cells.
- C) It takes advantage of metabolic differences between host and pathogen: Since pathogens have unique metabolic pathways that human cells do not share, antimicrobial agents can target these pathways without affecting the host's metabolism.
Option B is incorrect because for an antimicrobial agent to be effective, it must be more toxic to the pathogen than to the patient, not the other way around. This ensures the safety and health of the patient while effectively dealing with the infection.