Antibiotics that target cell wall synthesis ultimately cause bacterial cell death as a result of

Answer: c. osmotic lysis.

The bacterial cell wall represents a defense mechanism against osmotic lysis, maintaining the cell’s shape and structure, whereas the outer membrane holds the lipids and proteins that make the cell membrane impermeable. Anti-microbials such as antibiotics that hinder the cell wall synthesis compromise the integrity of this common physical boundary of bacteria subjecting it to the osmotic pressure difference between the cytoplasm and the exterior. In addition, water fills the cell and as it exceeds the swelling level of the tolerable limit, it ruptures, hence eventually the cell dies due to the process called osmotic lysis.