Antibiotic resistant bacteria (This is biology i did it here by accident) Flashcards
What leads to antibiotic resistant strains?
When bacteria develop a mutation in their DNA. This leads to changes in the bacteria’s characteristics e.g. being less affected by a particular antibiotic
Why are bacteria more likely to mutate
Reproduce very fast so they can evolve quickly
How does a resistant bacteria increase its population size?
When a host is being treated to get rid of an infection and one bacteria mutates and becomes immune. The bacteria continues to reproduce and the other bacteria die off
Why is antibiotic resistance getting worse?
Because of the overuse of antibiotics and doctors prescribing antibiotics for non serious cases
People don’t take all the prescribed antibiotics-taking all of them destroys all the bacteria which means none are left to mutate
