In: Biology
1. Explain one mechanism that bacteria use to become resistant to antibiotics. Give one example of an antibiotic-resistant bacterium.
2. Explain one reason why Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) are on the rise. Give one example of an HAI.
1. The site of action for the antibiotic can be modified by bacteria, in order to becomes resistant to the drug. The antibiotic binds to the active site as a substrate analogue or an allosteric site of the bacterial enzyme, to inhibit the growth of the microbe. This binding site may be altered by the bacteria, rendering the antibiotic ineffective.
Example: Penicillin binds to penicillin-binding proteins to exert its action on the microbe. However, MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) group of bacteria that has developed resistance to the beta-lactam group of antibiotics like penicillin.
2. HAIs are infections in patients while they are undergoing treatment at a hospital for some other disease or issue. Though preventable, they can also lead to fatality in serious cases. There are several reasons for increasing numbers of HAIs. Developments in medicine and surgery now allows doctors to perform various risky, non-invasive surgeries, using devices, which can be antigenic to a patient and cause an infection, if enough human trials have not been done. Also with antibiotic resistance coming up at a pace higher than the drug discovery, spending long time at a hospital, exposes the patient to many microbes in the environment, leading to secondary infections.
One example is catheter related urinary tract infections.