Evolution of Microbial Resistance Essay

Antibiotic resistance is when microorganisms, such as bacteria, are able to survive an exposure to antibiotics and these bacteria are now resistant to the effects of these antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance in bacteria has been an issue since antibiotics were discovered. The fact that bacteria can become resistant to our medical treatments such as antibiotics is a natural evolutionary process, but there are certain human contributions that definitely speed up the process. For example, one of the main contributions that will be discussed is the problem of over prescription of the antibiotic drugs. The

The acquisition of antibiotic resistance comes from horizontal gene transfer. Horizontal gene transfer refers to transferring of genes to an organism during that organisms life and not during reproduction. This acquisition comes from transduction, transformation and conjugation

The original success of antimicrobial agents has had a large influence over America’s dependency of antibiotics. Originally, these agents were widely considered as a cure-all drug by many involved in the health field and by the Americans receiving these medications. Such medical breakthrough won alexander Fleming, the creator of penicillin, a Nobel Prize in 1945 (“Antimicrobial Resistance: Global Report”) Regardless of the beneficial properties his vaccination, he warns that improper use can be followed by great consequences. Today that holds to be very true. For a period of time, there was a rapid rise in the production of different antibiotics to meet the supply and demand of health care prescriptions and patient consumption. Over time,

(KArch) We as human-hosts are not just helpless victims, our continuous reliance on antibiotics treatment helps contribute to the ever growing problem. The increased and inappropriate use of antibiotic therapy is the main cause of these antibiotic resistant bacteria. Patient this day and age are often prescribed pills for every condition. Patients come into doctors’ offices demanding antibiotics and healthcare providers are filling these orders. This in turn contributed to this growing chain of antimicrobial resistance.

Since penicillin and other antibiotics are ubiquitous in the market for people and companies to purchase, the chances of misusing them increase as a result. The two major factors that contribute to antibiotic resistance are through agricultural and medical use, respectively. Therefore, we should consider different arguments and identify the main cause of the problem before implementing any actions to resolve this challenging issue. In this inquiry and exploration paper, I am trying to explore who is responsible for this health crisis and what can be done to alleviate the impacts this issue has on our

The root of this problem lies in what Charles Darwin called the “survival of the fittest” in which organisms eventually adapt and evolve in response to their environment and its impending threats in order to survive. Bacteria is now doing this in response to antibiotics, which are purposed to kill bacteria so as to eliminate infections and diseases. However, now more and more bacteria are evolving to form antibiotic-resistant strains that there are no or very expensive antibiotics or treatments for yet, even if they were once easily treated diseases. Often this is a result of overuse or improper use of antibiotics by both medical professionals and patients. Overuse, such as attempting to use antibiotics for infections that do not warrant them, such as the common cold, allows existing bacteria to devise mechanisms such as “neutralizing” antibiotics, removing antibiotics, adapting their structure so as to become impenetrable to the antibiotics, or improving upon their genetics. Improper use of bacteria, such as beginning an antibiotic, but failing to use it to completion, also allows bacteria to do the

But we take antibiotics for granted. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus or (MRSA) before then infection with that bacteria had been almost exclusively contained the healthcare facilities. Today community-acquired MRSA is so common that we pretty much assume that any staph infection is “MRSA”. Concern about the rise of resistance often focuses on overuse of antibiotics. There’s plenty of evidence that the users are the problem. In a recent study show, almost two third of the people believe that antibiotics could be used to treat cold and flu, which are of course caused by viruses. Antibiotics kill bacteria not viruses. Everytime we use antibiotics we increase the chance for resistant strains to develop. Bacteria are very good at the evolution game and killing of more susceptible strains leaves the more resistant ones to fill the gap. Bacteria have also become good at transmitting resistance abilities through plasmids which are small circular DNA molecules that can be transferred like a hand off from bacteria to bacteria without any reproduction. The widespread use of antibiotics and the raising of animals has clearly contributed to the development

This is because antibiotics work differently to destroy an essential function of bacteria. From a biochemical or physical perspective, there are 3 main factors that contribute to the resistance. The first factor is that bacterium will alter its cell wall so that the antibiotic cannot penetrate it. Another factor includes bacteria producing enzymes that can break down the antibiotics before they can work. The third factor is that certain bacteria have developed mechanisms known as efflux pumps, which are able to generate antibiotics from the bacterial cell before they have a chance to exert any effect. The last effect is when the bacteria's antibiotic target site is altered which causes the antibiotic to be unable to bind itself to it, which is essential for the antibiotic to have an effect on the bacteria. The genetics of bacteria also play a large role in antibiotic resistance. Bacteria, like other living organisms, possess DNA that codes for the proteins and enzymes it requires for survival. Changes to the DNA can result in alterations in the final proteins or enzymes, which in turn can lead to antibiotic resistance. An example is the acquisition and accumulation of resistance genes from bacteria

When a bacterium develops a resistance to an antibiotic, the ability to kill the bacteria proves to be more difficult, causing the bacteria to reproduce rapidly without obstruction. A pathogen is able to gain resistance through the use of an antibiotic. Thus, if a microbe is able to survive the process of “selective pressure” then the bacteria with the resistance is able to reproduce, causing more pathogens with the defiance to spread. In addition to selective pressure, a bacterium has the possibility of developing a mutation or acquiring certain DNA codes that allow the microbes to obtain certain traits from other bacteria. This then allows any bacterium to become resistant due to the transfer of a DNA piece.

Antibiotic resistance occurs when antibiotics are no longer effective in controlling bacterial growth. The phenomenon of antibiotic resistance can be explained by the processes of selective pressure in which the strongest strains of bacteria survive antibiotic therapy, resulting in "superbugs" that are resistant to almost every type of antibiotic available for use (Davies & Davies, 2010). Because of this, certain bacterial infections are evolving that have no effective treatments. This resistance creates a threat to the common medicinal practices of today and can be seen as a global problem; perhaps one of the world's most serious problems. The issue of antibiotic resistance is emerging rapidly as a result of a myriad of uniformed practices and misuse of antibiotics.

Antibiotic resistance had been a crisis in the United States for many years now. According to the CDC, “up to 50% of the time, antibiotics are not optimally prescribed, often done so when not needed, [or with] incorrect dosing or duration” (CDC). More and more bacteria are becoming antibiotic resistant mostly due to incorrect amount and length of dosage, while sometimes, even the actual antibiotic is incorrectly given to the patient. Because of this, many strains of bacteria had become resistant to these antibiotics and thus, have infected more and more

Antimicrobials have also been found to affect natural microbial populations in aquatic and terrestrial systems. They have been shown to cause shifts in algae and bacteria communities with the potential to cause ecological cascade effects on higher trophic levels that rely on them as a food source. Antibiotic resistance happens when bacteria knows the medicine and which can make us sick and change so that the antibiotic used to treat the disease will not work for example when antibiotic resistance bacteria is methicillin-resistance is found on the skin whenever used antibiotic when individual develops rash on their skins this particular bacteria knows it will not react to it at

Dr. H. Scott Hurd author of, “The Other Side of Antimicrobial Resistance” is writing to contradict thought that antibiotic-resistance is becoming a complete global threat. (2012) the article gives several counter claims that lead you in a different mindset than simply healthcare precautions. The author talks about foodborne illness being linked to antibiotics resistance in modern medicine, also about the important knowledge that can be taken away from antibiotics when researching HIV/AIDS, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), and hospital-acquired infections through research and development. The author is showing the readers that there is another side, such as, not needing to be concerned about resistance to any antibiotics because scientist and others have an understanding of certain guidelines when it comes to the patients’ health. Therefore, each excuse people are giving to support the claim antibiotic-resistance is a threat to people. He states in his writing, “As soon as an antibiotic is first used, resistance begins to develop.” He is wanting to imply in his message that even though over-prescribing is a big factor, even as simple as the first time an antibiotic is prescribed it is having effects on the patient. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, in “Antibiotics: Misuse puts you and others at risk” infers the overuse or misuse of antibacterial drugs can make resistance develop even faster, causing an epidemic before scientist can find a solution.

Dr. H. Scott Hurd, author of, “The Other Side of Antimicrobial Resistance” is writing to contradict thought that antibiotic-resistance is becoming a complete global threat. (2012) the article gives several counter claims that lead you in a different mindset than simply health care precautions. The author talks about foodborne illness been linked to antibiotic resistance in modern medicine, also about the important knowledge that can be taken away from antibiotics when researching HIV/AIDS, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), and hospital-acquired infections through research and development. The author is showing the readers that there is another side, such as, not needing to be concerned about resistance to any antibiotics because scientist and others have an understanding of certain guidelines when it comes to the patients’ health. Therefore, each excuse people are giving to support the claim antibiotic-resistance is a threat to people. He states in his writing, “As soon as an antibiotic is first used, resistance begins to develop.” He is wanting to imply in his message that even though over-prescribing is a big factor, even as simple as the first time an antibiotic is prescribed it is having effects on the patient. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, in “Antibiotics: Misuse Puts You and Others at Risk” it infers the overuse or misuse of antibacterial drugs can make resistance develops even faster, causing an epidemic before scientists can find a

The overuse of antibiotics has been a problem for well over a decade. This misuse leads to many nonvisible problems arising within the human population. As the use of antibiotics increases, the number of antibiotic resistant bacteria also increases. When bacteria become resistant to an antibiotic, another antibiotic must be used to try and kill it and the cycle becomes vicious. Michael Martin, Sapna Thottathil, and Thomas Newman stated that antimicrobial resistance is, “an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all government sectors and society” (2409).