•  
  •  
 

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Keywords

antibiotic resistance, Escherichia-coli, Guatemala, antimicrobial

College

Life Sciences

Department

Microbiology and Molecular Biology

Abstract

It is estimated that at least one-half of all antibiotic use in the United States is inappropriate.1 Physicians often prescribe broad spectrum antibiotics when the disease causing bacterial strain could be targeted specifically. Also, patients are prone to expect prescriptions for antibiotics even when their infections are viral, such as the common cold. While the United States and most industrialized nations require prescriptions for antimicrobial drug use, most developing countries do not. It is reasonable to hypothesize that drug resistance in these countries may be occurring at a more accelerated rate.2 I tested Escherichia-coli isolates from Guatemala for resistance to eleven different antibiotic drugs. Because the genes for most resistance mechanisms are contained on plasmids, I also did plasmid profiles on each strain.

Download

Included in

Microbiology Commons

Share

COinS