When Antibiotics Fail
MI 1.2.4
Introduction
If you've ever been prescribed an antibiotic, your doctor probably instructed you to make sure you finish your antibiotic (even if you start to feel better). Why?
Misuse of antibiotics can increase the chance of bacteria developing antibiotic resistance.
The spread of antibiotic resistance is driven by natural selection.
Speaking of natural selection... Let's discuss Charles Darwin and his Theory of Evolution.
What do we mean by evolution? Evolution is not something that occurs within individuals. Evolution is something that occurs within populations over time due to genetic mutations. We will discuss 4 of the major points of Darwin's Theory.
1. Variations exist within populations. In a population of an organism, each individual will have slight differences in their genetic makeup. This is due to random mutations, but in the case of bacteria, can also be due to gene transfer.
2. Some variations are more favorable than others. Genetic mutations are random. Sometimes they're neutral, sometimes they are harmful, but sometimes they are beneficial.
3. In a population, more offspring are produced than can survive. This leads to competition for limited resources, allowing only the individuals that are best adapted to the environment to survive.
4. Individuals with greater fitness have a higher chance of survival. This has nothing to do with "physical fitness." We're talking about genetic fitness - possessing favorable genetic traits. If an individual has a mutation that is beneficial, it will make them more likely to survive. This makes them more likely to reproduce. When they do so, they will pass on that favorable trait to the next generation, and so on and so forth.
Antibiotic Resistance Lab
You will model how misuse of antibiotics can lead to increased spread of antibiotic resistance in a population of bacteria.