Ciprofloxacin has dramatic effects on the mitochondrial genome — antibiotics should be used cautiously

Antibiotics have saved many lives by rescuing patients with bacterial or fungal infections, but these valuable drugs also have a dark side. As most medical drugs, also many antibiotics can have undesired effects on the body’s metabolism, causing more or less severe symptoms. The group of fluoroquinolones with its most famous member ciprofloxacin is such a case: Fluoroquinolones are some of the most frequently used broad-spectrum antibacterial antibiotics, and usually prescribed for respiratory, urinary or ear infections. While they are generally well tolerated, some patients receiving