Final answer:
Neomycin is used to reduce ammonia levels, which is crucial as high ammonia is toxic to the CNS. It targets gut bacteria that produce ammonia, ensuring that less ammonia enters the bloodstream.
Step-by-step explanation:
Neomycin is an antibiotic that affects bacteria in the gut, which can help to keep ammonia levels low by reducing the number of ammonia-producing bacteria. Ammonia (NH3) is a toxic byproduct of protein metabolism in the body, primarily formed in the liver.
The liver hepatocytes convert most of the ammonia into urea, which is less toxic and can be safely excreted in urine.
This conversion is vital because high levels of ammonia can be toxic, particularly to the central nervous system (CNS), leading to symptoms such as flapping tremor, slurring of speech, blurring of vision, or even coma and death in severe cases.
In an environment where the liver is compromised or when there is an abnormality in the portal and systemic veins, as in hepatic coma, ammonia levels can become elevated.
Ensuring that ammonia levels are kept under control is therefore crucial for health, and medications like neomycin are sometimes used in this context to reduce the production of ammonia by gut bacteria, which can help to prevent or alleviate symptoms.