When I think of antibiotics, I think of something that helps
“kill” whatever is making you sick. But did you know some antibiotics might
make some bacteria thrive? Probably not! Antibiotics are supposed to stop
killer bacteria, not make bacteria stronger, right?
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| http://www.dvorak.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/bug.jpg |
A research group at Harvard, led by George M. Church,
studied bacteria. What they found was quite astonishing. The researchers found
hundreds of bacteria that can subsist (maintain or support oneself) on antibiotics “as their sole
source of carbon.” What the researchers did was isolate strains from soils in
11 locations, which involved alfalfa fields in Minnesota and urban plots in
Boston, and fed them 18 natural and synthetic antibiotics, including
penicillin. “Bacteria growth was seen with almost all of them.” The researchers
say these microbes could be considered super resistant, “since then can
tolerate antibiotic concentrations that are 50 times the levels used to define
bacteria as resistant.”
This
research and knowledge is pretty astonishing in my view. Not only does the
research seem well analyzed, but also the way the article introduces the topic
is well written. All of the “facts” in
the text are backed up by scientific claims or by the researcher’s findings. I
also like the fact the author puts in facts relating to the topic discussed.
“None of the microbes studied by the team cause illness in people.” “And no
human pathogens are known to have the ability to eat antibiotics,” are just a
few of the interesting facts the author puts in the article.
To
make this article even more interesting, the one question that arises when I
read this article, can bacteria in our body be “super resistant?” was answered.
“Since bacterial resistance can be acquired through gene transfer, the
possibility exists that human pathogens could pick up resistance from one of
these relatives in the soil.” What would happen if bacteria in our bodies
became super resistant to antibiotics and thrived off of them? Pretty crazy to
think about, I guess we will just have to wait for more research!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/science/08obmicr.html
Wow what a change of events. Usually, you would think that taking antibiotics would help you. It already creeped me out how there are microbes that are resistant to antibiotics. Like what would we do to them if they were bad? How do we get rid of them if they're resistant to the only thing we know to man to terminate them. I like the question you raise at the end. Same question I asked myself while reading. Could this be a good thing? or a bad thing? Another question I have after reading this great article is where are these bacteria type found? Can any of us be carrying some of them?
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