Antibiotic Resistance Mutations

Definition

These are changes in bacteria's genetic material that allow them to survive exposure to antibiotics that would normally kill them.

Analogy

Imagine if you had an invisible shield that could protect you from water balloons. If someone throws water balloons at you (like antibiotics attacking bacteria), they wouldn't affect you because your shield (the resistance mutation) protects you.

Related terms

Natural Selection: The process by which organisms with traits that help them survive and reproduce tend to pass on those traits more often than organisms without those traits. In this case, bacteria with antibiotic resistance mutations are more likely to survive and reproduce.

Plasmid: A small ring of DNA found in bacteria that can carry antibiotic resistance genes and be transferred between bacteria.

Superbug: A strain of bacteria that has become resistant to multiple types of antibiotics, often due to the accumulation of several antibiotic resistance mutations.