For many years, antibiotics have been effectively used to treatbacterial disease; and pesticides have been used to protect ouragricultural crops from many kinds of pests, including insects,worms (nematodes), fungi, or agricultural weeds, for example.
A growing concern for treating bacterial diseases or pest outbreaksis the evolution of antibiotic or pesticide resistance by bacterialor pest populations. Resistance means that a particular antibioticis no longer effective in treating a disease, or that a particularpesticide will no longer prevent crop damage. This resistance canbe viewed as evolution of a new trait at the population level,which is resistance to an antibiotic or to a pesticide. In thisassignment, you will explore specific examples of antibiotic orpesticide resistance.
Assignment details:
After reading materials about evolution and about antibiotic andpesticide resistance in the text, the Course Materials, the AIUOnline Library and / or the Internet, answer the following.
1.Select and describe one example of antibiotic resistance orpesticide resistance. Be specific in your choice.
Ć¢ĀĀ¦Describe the background for your choice of resistance. Includedetails about the disease or pest and the established controlstrategies. How have we used antibiotics (to treat a particulardisease), or pesticides (to protect from a pest); and how has thischanged?
2.Explain how the resistant trait evolved based on principles ofnatural selection and evolution of a trait at the populationlevel.
3.For your specific example, what are the consequences ofresistance in terms of human health or crop loss / damage?
4.What steps can be taken to prevent or slow down the evolution ofantibiotic or pesticide resistance? Do you think we will succeed indoing so? Why or why not?