1 A mutation occurs in the chromosome of a bacterium that is

1. A mutation occurs in the chromosome of a bacterium that is infecting a patient in a hospital. The mutation makes the cell resistant to the particular antibiotic that is being used to treat the patient. Given this scenario:

a.       Discuss how the resistance might spread to other bacterial cells in the patient and other bacterial cells within the hospital. In your discussion, you should discuss at least 3 mechanisms that may cause the spread of the resistance?

b.       How might these antibiotic resistance mutation be dangerous to both healthy and unhealthy individuals?

Solution

a).

Horizontal gene transfer is the transfer of genomes by between bacteria by the routes that does not involve parent-offspring transmission. Conjugation, transduction and transformation are the three mechanism of horizontal gene transfer.

Transformation type of gene transfer occurs between bacteria. The genes released by dead bacteria can be transferred to the live bacteria, and get integrated into its genome, which results in genetic recombination of the host.

Transduction is also involving the genetic material transfer, but this needs bacteriophage as media. The bacteriophage infects the bacteria in lytic cycle and releases the new virions, the capsids of some of these virions carry the bacterial DNA fragments into the new host bacteria, followed by genetic recombination of the host bacteria.

Conjugation: It is the transfer of genetic material from cell to cell by means of direct contact or a bridge like structure. Bacterial conjugation needs the conjugation tube for genome transfer, both transduction and transformation does not need this.

Horizontal gene transfer is the major means by which bacteria develop resistance against antibiotics.

b). The antibiotic resistance results in further worsening of the disease state of the patient because the drug does not work. Also, the spread of resistant strain to the healthy individuals makes them resistant to the current antibiotics available.