“May all be happy, may all be healed, may all be at peace and may no one ever suffer."
Ampicillin inhibits bacterial cell wall synthesis by binding to 1 or more of the penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) which in turn inhibit the final transpeptidation step of peptidoglycan synthesis in bacterial cell walls. Bacteria eventually lyse due to ongoing activity of cell wall autolytic enzymes (autolysins and murein hydrolases) while cell wall assembly is arrested.