How does antibiotic resistance relate to evolution?

Antibiotics are used to treat various diseases and ailments by targetting the bacteria which cause said diseases. Bacteria are subject to natural selection and evolution like any other organism. Random mutation will always occur in individual bacteria cells, and some of these mutations will be helpful in protecting the bacteria from the effects of the antibiotic. The bacteria cells which do not possess such mutations will not be protected, and therefore if the antibiotic is present they will die and fail to reproduce. The cells with the mutation will then have less competition and will reproduce more, and overtime this will result in the evolution of the bacteria to become resistant to the antibiotic.

SH
Answered by Syed Hadi T. Biology tutor

6468 Views

See similar Biology GCSE tutors

Related Biology GCSE answers

All answers ▸

What's the difference between a eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell?


Most cases of scarlet fever occur in children. Adults have usually developed immunity to a toxin that the Streptococcus bacteria produce during infection. Explain how an adult develops immunity to the toxin.


Where does photosynthesis take place?


MRSA and C. difficile are resistant bacterial strains which cause life-threatening infections in hospitals. Explain how MRSA/ C. difficile could arise from non-resistant bacteria. [6 marks]


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2025 by IXL Learning