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Flashcards · Biology · Evidence for Evolution and Classification

Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria

16 cards

  1. Why can bacteria evolve rapidly?

    They reproduce at a fast rate.

  2. What produces new strains of bacteria?

    Mutations.

  3. What does antibiotic resistance mean?

    The bacteria are not killed by the antibiotic.

  4. What happens to non-resistant bacteria when an antibiotic is used?

    They are killed.

  5. What happens to resistant bacteria when an antibiotic is used?

    They survive and reproduce.

  6. Why does the population of the resistant strain rise?

    The survivors reproduce and there is no competition from the killed bacteria.

  7. Why does a resistant strain spread?

    People are not immune to it and there is no effective treatment.

  8. What does MRSA stand for?

    Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

  9. Do antibiotics work against viruses?

    No.

  10. Why should patients finish a course of antibiotics?

    So all the bacteria are killed and none survive to form resistant strains.

  11. Why should farm use of antibiotics be restricted?

    It gives bacteria more chances to evolve resistance.

  12. Why is developing new antibiotics difficult?

    It is costly and slow.

  13. Is antibiotic resistance evidence for evolution?

    Yes. It shows natural selection happening in bacteria.

  14. Can a single bacterium change to become resistant because it was exposed to an antibiotic?

    No. Resistance comes from random mutations, and the antibiotic selects the resistant ones.

  15. Why is a hospital a risky place for resistant bacteria to spread?

    Patients are ill, have wounds, and antibiotics are used a lot.

  16. Four panels of bacteria, showing one resistant bacterium surviving and reproducing, with no labels. Describe what is happening in each panel to explain how the population becomes resistant. (Bacteria and an antibiotic.)

    1 A mutation makes one bacterium resistant. 2 The antibiotic kills the bacteria that are not resistant. 3 The resistant bacterium survives and reproduces. 4 The population is now resistant and the strain can spread.