M465:Antibiotic Resistance: Difference between revisions
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
Antibiotics are molecules that kill bacteria or inhibit their growth. Common antibiotics target important cellular functions in bacteria (such as cell wall remodeling or protein synthesis). Believe it or not, many microbes are naturally resistant to antibiotics, either because they produce them or because that resistance is advantageous in the habitat they occupy. One place in which such selection is currently taking place, is in the human microbiome. Unfortunately, due to the overuse of antibiotics (both in medicine and agriculture), widespread antibiotic resistance has become the norm. The figure below captures the trend and shows the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance in human pathogens. <br><br> | Antibiotics are molecules that kill bacteria or inhibit their growth. Common antibiotics target important cellular functions in bacteria (such as cell wall remodeling or protein synthesis). Believe it or not, many microbes are naturally resistant to antibiotics, either because they produce them or because that resistance is advantageous in the habitat they occupy. One place in which such selection is currently taking place, is in the human microbiome. Unfortunately, due to the overuse of antibiotics (both in medicine and agriculture), widespread antibiotic resistance has become the norm. The figure below captures the trend and shows the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance in human pathogens. <br><br> | ||
[[Image:Antibiotic_resistance_image.gif]] | [[Image:Antibiotic_resistance_image.gif]] <br> <br> | ||
Today you will be testing whether or not your honey bee isolates are resistant to antibiotics. Honey bees are agricultural organisms and are treated with the antibiotic tetracycline prophylactically, twice a year, by many bee keepers. Because of this practice, the honey bee microbiome has tetracycline resistance determinants. For a nice paper on these determinants, check this link [out: http://mbio.asm.org/content/3/6/e00377-12.short]: | |||
'''PROTOCOL'''<BR><BR> | '''PROTOCOL'''<BR><BR> | ||
'''Use the plate(s) from week 1<UL><LI> | '''Use the plate(s) from week 1<UL><LI> | ||
Revision as of 10:00, 3 February 2014
Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotics are molecules that kill bacteria or inhibit their growth. Common antibiotics target important cellular functions in bacteria (such as cell wall remodeling or protein synthesis). Believe it or not, many microbes are naturally resistant to antibiotics, either because they produce them or because that resistance is advantageous in the habitat they occupy. One place in which such selection is currently taking place, is in the human microbiome. Unfortunately, due to the overuse of antibiotics (both in medicine and agriculture), widespread antibiotic resistance has become the norm. The figure below captures the trend and shows the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance in human pathogens.
Today you will be testing whether or not your honey bee isolates are resistant to antibiotics. Honey bees are agricultural organisms and are treated with the antibiotic tetracycline prophylactically, twice a year, by many bee keepers. Because of this practice, the honey bee microbiome has tetracycline resistance determinants. For a nice paper on these determinants, check this link [out: http://mbio.asm.org/content/3/6/e00377-12.short]:
PROTOCOL
