Antibiotics Essay

Environmental pressures can change a species over time, based on Darwin’s theory of natural selection and “survival of the fittest”. If a pressure affects a large number of the same species, two outcomes are possible. The species will either become extinct, or more commonly, a small percentage of the original population will outlast the pressure (generally due to a mutation in its genes, making it resistant to a specific occurrence). The remainder of the species will reproduce the population, passing on their mutation to some of their offspring, until all organisms carry that mutation (often after several generations.

The above occurrence has lead to some bacteria becoming resistant to some forms of antibiotics (aka antibiotic resistant bacteria).

Antibiotics were first discovered by Professor Alexander Fleming in 1928 by accident when cleaning up his laboratory. This coincidental discovery lead to Fleming and many other scientists changing society and medicine and the way people looked at what we now see as simple to treat. Prior to the discovery, surgery was almost impossible to perform due to the risk of infection, and nothing to counteract the bacteria. With the introduction of antibiotics, infections now being treated were before considered to be dangerous and even deadly. Antibiotics have saved millions of lives in the approximate 100 years since it has been discovered.

However, as antibiotics have been overused, underused and misused in treating bacteria as well as viruses (which antibiotics do not have an effect on), bacteria have begun to fight back and some have altered their DNA to become harder to treat with antibiotics. When this happens, bacteria are no longer sensitive to this medication that would have on...

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...sk. Available: http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/consumer-health/in-depth/antibiotics/art-20045720?pg=1 . Last accessed 27/04/14.

Mayo Clinics are all over the United States and the staff aim to contribute to health and well being. Mayo Clinic is an educational facility, as well as providing health care and researching important medical issues and trying to aid in finding a cure for many threatening things. It provides information similar to those previously mentioned, plus more and is aimed at the preventions individuals can carry out themselves.

The above sources contain very similar information, leading me to believe that the information is reliable and valid on all sites, based on what health professionals know of these advanced bacteria so far. They are also well used sites with good reputations and are mostly government or medical organisations sites.