I am honestly puzzled by such questions. I am not sure why our time is being wasted with basic questions like that. If you can google the answer - please do so first.

Best,

Mechanisms of antibiotics effects on bacteria are explained in the following papers:

1.

Baral, B., & Mozafari, M. R. (2020). Strategic moves of “superbugs” against available chemical scaffolds: signaling, regulation, and challenges. ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science, 3(3), 373-400.

2.

Mozafari, M. R., Torkaman, S., Karamouzian, F. M., Rasti, B., & Baral, B. (2021). Antimicrobial applications of nanoliposome encapsulated silver nanoparticles: A potential strategy to overcome bacterial resistance. Current Nanoscience, 17(1), 26-40.

• Antibiotics cannot kill viruses because viruses have different structures and replicate in a different way than bacteria.
• Antibiotics work by targeting the growth machinery in bacteria (not viruses) to kill or inhibit those particular bacteria.
• When you think about it structurally, it makes sense that an antibiotic could not work to kill a virus with a completely different set of replicating “machinery”.

Antibiotics work by selectively inhibiting cells of infecting microorganisms, leaving mammalian host cells relatively unharmed - by targeting growth machinery in bacteria or fungi that are absent or modified in the mammalian host. Because viruses are non-living and non-metabolizing particles, they lack the structures needed for selective inhibition by antibiotics.

Antibiotics interfere with activity of living cells. Viruses are not cells so the target for antibiotics are not in viruses

Basically, the physiologies of viruses and bacteria are fundamentally different, with almost all bacteria able to conduct independent metabolic processes, whereas viruses depend almost entirely on the metabolisms of the cells that they invade. Antibiotics act on enzyme and synthetic systems in bacterial cells that are not found in viruses. However, some viral genes code for enzymes that are essential to the viral intracellular survival and replication, and these can be susceptible to drugs. Good examples are anti-retroviral drugs used in HIV treatment; these act on the enzyme systems essential to the HIV "conversion" so that it can use the host cell's DNA, or other systems such as those used to get the virus into the cell. Similarly, there are antivirals for other viruses including COVID. However, they are very expensive to use on large populations such as in a pandemic, and measures such as social isolation and hygiene measures are important as they limit the spread.

Your answer is outstanding Roger Bayston, I like your explanation.

The term “antibiotic” refers to a chemical substance produced wholly or partly by a living organism (generally a microorganism) and which can inhibit or destroy other microorganisms. Antibiotics inhibit or destroy microorganisms essentially by acting on metabolic pathways of the organism.

Viruses are non- living, non-metabolizing, infectious particles that merely rely on the host cell for self-replication. For this reason, the phenomenon of “antibiosis” (antagonistic association between an organism and the metabolic substances produced by another) does not apply to viruses.

Therefore, any chemical agent that inhibits viral replicative cycles at any stage of replication (even if virus-specified enzymes are inhibited), is technically not classifiable as an antibiotic.– it could safely be referred to as an antiviral drug.

Viruses are nonliving and don't have cellular structure that the antibiotics target to bind and exact their effect of either inhibit ing or kill. Most antibiotics are products of metabolism that microorganisms use to antagonize each other, viruses don't metabolize they rely on host cells to their existence.

Viruses do not have a cell wall, cell membranes, or ribosomes like bacteria, more so, their genome is completely different from bacteria, which makes it difficult as antibiotics are targeted at these cell metabolic pathways. Viruses are a bunch of crystals that occupy a borderline between living and non-living.

Antibiotics can only used to treat the bacterial infections due to the different structures of bacteria and viruses.

Antibiotics are medications specifically designed to target and kill bacteria or inhibit their growth. They work by interfering with bacterial processes that are different from those found in viruses. Here are a few key reasons why antibiotics are not effective against viruses:

1. Structural and genetic differences: Bacteria and viruses have distinct structures and genetic compositions. Antibiotics are designed to target specific components of bacterial cells, such as cell walls, protein synthesis machinery, or metabolic processes. These targets are absent in viruses, which have different structures and replicate using the host cell's machinery.

2. Replication mechanisms: Bacteria reproduce independently, and antibiotics can disrupt essential bacterial processes involved in replication, leading to bacterial cell death. In contrast, viruses require host cells to replicate. They invade host cells, hijack the cellular machinery to produce viral components, and assemble new viral particles. Antibiotics cannot specifically target viral replication mechanisms without harming the host cells.

3. Selective toxicity: Antibiotics are designed to have selective toxicity, meaning they can target bacteria while minimizing harm to the host. This selectivity is achieved by exploiting differences between bacterial and human cells. However, viruses replicate inside human cells, making it challenging to develop antiviral medications with selective toxicity.

4. Antiviral medications: To control viral infections, antiviral medications specifically targeting viral replication processes are used. These medications can interfere with viral enzymes, proteins, or viral entry and release mechanisms, effectively inhibiting viral replication. Antiviral drugs are developed to target specific viruses or groups of viruses and are designed to minimize harm to the host cells.

Regarding the control of viruses, you are correct that measures to control viral infections often focus on cultural practices and public health interventions. These measures include vaccinations, hygiene practices (such as handwashing), social distancing, quarantine, and the development of antiviral medications specific to certain viral infections.

It is crucial to differentiate between bacterial and viral infections and to use the appropriate treatment strategies for each. Inappropriate use of antibiotics for viral infections can contribute to the development of antibiotic resistance and have no beneficial effect on the viral infection itself.

Antibiotics are chemical substances elaborated from some microorganisms and used against some other microorganisms. some antibiotics are semisynthetic and some synthetic chemicals. but as viruses as acellular only chemicals are used to control them.