300 Words

Antibiotic Resistance

For many years, antibiotics have been effectively used to treat bacterial disease. 

A growing concern for treating bacterial diseases is the evolution of antibiotic resistance by bacterial populations. Resistance means that a particular antibiotic is no longer effective in treating a disease. This resistance can be viewed as evolution of a new trait at the population level, which is resistance to an antibiotic. 

Recommended: Click on the following links to review materials to increase your understanding of natural selection and antibiotic resistance:

• Understanding Evolution
• Antibiotic Resistance

Focus your discussion on ONE of the following topics: 

1. The use, overuse, and abuse of antibiotics are accredited with creating antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. Explain how this relates to natural selection. 
2. Visit this tool: ResistanceOpen. Type in your location to find and report on how common antibiotic-resistant bacteria are in your area. Compare the incidence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in your area with that in Lincoln, NE and Miami, FL. Do the results concern you? Give 1 suggestion for why there are such widely different results.
3. Using a credible source, describe at least 2 of the things that people do (you can include individuals, doctors, health care professionals, hospitals, farmers, and so on) that contribute to this problem. Explain. 
4. Are there things that you can personally do to reduce your risk or even to reduce the spread of these dangerous microbes? 

Use at least 1 credible source to support the arguments presented in your post.