Zoology - Biotechnology and Its Applications Question with Solution | TestHub

A major problem in the treatment of bacterial mediated diseases is that many bacteria have been found to show resistance to antibiotics. The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is closely linked to the extent that antibiotics are used in humans and items of human diet. Resistant strains may appear rapidly or slowly, according to the amount or type of antibiotic used. Bacteria occur in such large numbers that there is a high chance of a mutant individual eventually appearing in the population. As soon as it does, use of the antibiotic to which it is resistant will give it a selective advantage over non-resistant types and it will multiply and eventually become the dominant type. Antibiotics may also be destroyed by enzymes inside the cells being targetted. A well-known and important example is the group of enzymes known as penicillinases which hydrolyses and destroys penicillins and cephalosporins.