1. Briefly describe three factors that are contributing to the problem of antibiotic resistance (may be biological, social, etc.).
2. Choose an antibiotic (or class of antibiotics) and look it up in your text and/or online. Briefly describe what the antibiotic targets.
Examples of antibiotics: penicillin, carbapenems (class of antibiotics), erythromycin, etc.
3. What is one specific adaptation that can occur to confer resistance to the antibiotic you selected? For example, if the antibiotic targets the bacterial ribosome, what is a specific adaptation that would allow bacteria to not be affected by the antibiotic?
4. Provide examples of other adaptations that can make a bacterium resistant to an antibiotic.
5. What are R plasmids?
6. Describe how natural selection (~"survival of the fittest") works using the development of resistance to the antibiotic you selected (how does it evolve?).
7. Briefly, why is antibiotic resistance such a serious public health concern (be specific, use data to support).
8. Identify a few strategies that might help prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance.