College Essay: Antibiotic Resistance
During World War I, thousands died of bacterial infections resulting from injuries in and out of the battle field. It was expected, during this time, that if a wound became infected and amputation was not a choice, death would certainly follow. Finally, during World War II, penicillin was discovered and a defense against bacterial infection was available. Unfortunately, this miracle drug was not the panacea that doctors and scientists had hoped. “Just four years after drug companies began mass-producing penicillin in 1943, microbes began appearing that could resist it” (Lewis, 1995, para. 1). Scientists attempted to counter this resistance by devising new remedies from penicillin only to find that some strains quickly adapted. Today, patients are being prescribed medicines that are overkill for the illnesses they face at the time. It is this natural decrease of original antidotes and overuse of drugs on microorganisms that is causing the increase of antibiotic resistance.
“Since the 1940s, when penicillin was developed into a drug, scientists have mined the natural world for new antibiotics. However, many scientists now suspect that this vein is running out” (Brownlee, 2005, para. 8). One common attribute, between bacteria and humans, is the desire to survive. The human race has prevailed over time because it has passed on what one generation has learned to the next. All microbes work in the same fashion, but in this sense their knowledge is called a plasmid. A plasmid is terrifying, natural form of resistance made up of a small circle of DNA. This disk of information is passed between different types of bacterium and updates strains with the new keys to survive. In an epidemic in Guatemala, a microbe carried a plasmid which held resistances to four antibiotics, causing the deaths of 12,500 people (Lewis, 1995). This simple, yet vital communication, has given bacteria the ability to survive man’s pharmaceutical assaults. It is for this reason that the vein of natural antidotes is quickly running out for the human race.
Antibiotics that were once successful at treating illnesses are now becoming insignificant. The problem of drug-resistance has largely been blamed on inappropriate prescribing and overuse of antibiotics. Obliviously, people who are facing life threatening illnesses are the ones who need to be treated with the proper antibiotics. According to Dragon (2006):
Research has revealed a high correlation between antibiotic use and drug resistance in European countries several years ago. Countries at the high end of antibiotic use included Spain, Italy and France and those at the low end of use were Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands. Countries with high rates of resistance had high levels of antibiotic use, and those with low rates of resistance had low levels of antibiotic use.
The problem is individuals who are given medicines that are much stronger than needed and given twice as long. “People take antibiotics for five to 10 days, as opposed to an antidepressant or lipid-lowering drug that you take for life and they don't develop resistance” (Dragon, 2006, para. 18). If people researched more into the proper medicines for their ailment and pharmaceutical institutions focused more on designing a product that targets a disease more appropriately, then the resistance of microbes to antibiotics would slowly decrease.
It is understood that there is little that can be done to stop the natural evolution of bacterium. Like all organisms on this planet, they will continue to adapt to the forces in nature to ensure their survival. The issue at hand is humankind jumping into the process of this evolution and escalating it into a very destructive force. A natural decrease of original antidotes is one thing, but an overuse of drugs on microorganisms will create a potential death sentence for all.
References
Lewis, R. (1995). The Rise of Antibiotic-Resistant Infections. FDA Consumer magazine.
Retrieved November 27, 2006, from http://www.fda.gov
Brownlee, C. (2005, May 5). Us Against Them. Science News, 347-348.
Retrieved November 25, 2006, from EBSCOhost database.
Curbing Antibiotics. 1999, February 1. MacLean’s, p62. Retrieved November 25, 2006,
from EBSCOhost database.
Dragon, N. (2006, August). Fighting today’s superbugs. Australian Nursing Journal, 16-
19. Retrieved November 25, 2006, from EBSCOhost database.
“Since the 1940s, when penicillin was developed into a drug, scientists have mined the natural world for new antibiotics. However, many scientists now suspect that this vein is running out” (Brownlee, 2005, para. 8). One common attribute, between bacteria and humans, is the desire to survive. The human race has prevailed over time because it has passed on what one generation has learned to the next. All microbes work in the same fashion, but in this sense their knowledge is called a plasmid. A plasmid is terrifying, natural form of resistance made up of a small circle of DNA. This disk of information is passed between different types of bacterium and updates strains with the new keys to survive. In an epidemic in Guatemala, a microbe carried a plasmid which held resistances to four antibiotics, causing the deaths of 12,500 people (Lewis, 1995). This simple, yet vital communication, has given bacteria the ability to survive man’s pharmaceutical assaults. It is for this reason that the vein of natural antidotes is quickly running out for the human race.
Antibiotics that were once successful at treating illnesses are now becoming insignificant. The problem of drug-resistance has largely been blamed on inappropriate prescribing and overuse of antibiotics. Obliviously, people who are facing life threatening illnesses are the ones who need to be treated with the proper antibiotics. According to Dragon (2006):
Research has revealed a high correlation between antibiotic use and drug resistance in European countries several years ago. Countries at the high end of antibiotic use included Spain, Italy and France and those at the low end of use were Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands. Countries with high rates of resistance had high levels of antibiotic use, and those with low rates of resistance had low levels of antibiotic use.
The problem is individuals who are given medicines that are much stronger than needed and given twice as long. “People take antibiotics for five to 10 days, as opposed to an antidepressant or lipid-lowering drug that you take for life and they don't develop resistance” (Dragon, 2006, para. 18). If people researched more into the proper medicines for their ailment and pharmaceutical institutions focused more on designing a product that targets a disease more appropriately, then the resistance of microbes to antibiotics would slowly decrease.
It is understood that there is little that can be done to stop the natural evolution of bacterium. Like all organisms on this planet, they will continue to adapt to the forces in nature to ensure their survival. The issue at hand is humankind jumping into the process of this evolution and escalating it into a very destructive force. A natural decrease of original antidotes is one thing, but an overuse of drugs on microorganisms will create a potential death sentence for all.
References
Lewis, R. (1995). The Rise of Antibiotic-Resistant Infections. FDA Consumer magazine.
Retrieved November 27, 2006, from http://www.fda.gov
Brownlee, C. (2005, May 5). Us Against Them. Science News, 347-348.
Retrieved November 25, 2006, from EBSCOhost database.
Curbing Antibiotics. 1999, February 1. MacLean’s, p62. Retrieved November 25, 2006,
from EBSCOhost database.
Dragon, N. (2006, August). Fighting today’s superbugs. Australian Nursing Journal, 16-
19. Retrieved November 25, 2006, from EBSCOhost database.
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