Superbugs are becoming increasingly more common, each generation is nding new ways to

evolve.Bacteria evolve in ways that are di"erent than sexual reproducing organisms, because they
copy their DNA exactly the only variations that can occur are mutations in the genetic structure,
and recently bacteria has evolved the ability to share di"erent helpful genes with completely
di"erent species this creates a problem using antibiotics against the bacteria. First how do
superbugs evolve? Also what kind of bacteria is becoming a danger to humans because of this?
Is there ways that we can beat superbugs?

Bacteria that have developed special immunities to certain antibiotics have become this way
because of many di"erent reasons. The rst way that bacteria evolve immunities is the simplest.
Bacteria reproduce asexually unlike humans so that means their o"spring are genetically identical
in a perfect world, but because mistakes are made in the DNA during copying there are mistakes
or mutations some times these mutations could make the bacteria unable to move, and in rare
situations they cause immunities to antibiotics. So if this was a bacteria that caused E. Coli if you
would take an antibiotic for it then every bacteria without resistance would die so that a hand few
would survive and be able to reproduce rapidly due to abundance of resources, this way is known
as vertical gene transfer. Another way is horizontal gene transfer.
'Conjugation occurs when there is direct cell-cell contact between two bacteria (which need not
be closely related) and transfer of small pieces of DNA called plasmids takes place. This is
thought to be the main mechanism of HGT.' "Kenneth Todar, Ph.D."(1). So horizontal gene transfer
is where two bacteria of the same or di"erent species can exchange parts of DNA with one
another to benet each individual. That is how most superbugs evolve.


Only certain species of bacteria in general but very few have built a resistance to antibiotics. One
of the biggest threatening bacteria that has grown resistant is a bug known as MRSA (methicillin-
resistant staphylcuccos Aureus) 'Mutant gene variants are passed from parent to o!spring, and
advantageous mutations spread through future generations in that way. Over time, additional
benecial mutations that build on the rst may occur and begin to spread in the population, allowing
more complex traits to evolve as mutations accumulate. This standard picture of evolution is at work in
all organisms whether they are humans that eventually evolve the ability to digest milk or a plant
species that adapts to the presence of heavy metals in its environment. The same mechanism also
works on bacteria. In fact, biologists have observed the MRSA strain infecting a single patient evolving
through random mutation and selection. The patient was being treated with vancomycin, and slowly,
over the course of a few months and 35 separate mutations, the bacteria evolved into a vancomycin-
resistant MRSA strain'Weigel, L. M., Clewell, D. B., Gill, S. R., Clark, N. C., McDougal, L. K.,
Flannagan, S. E., Kolonay, J. F., Shetty, J., Killgore, G. E., and Tenover, F. C. (2003).(2). As stated
above a simple bacteria that caused minor damage can become something much more threatening
the new strain of MRSA caused more deaths in 2003 than HIV/AIDS. Antibiotic resistint bacteria are
becoming more common and more deadly.



Some ways that scientist are coming up with new antibacterials that might be able to help destroy
antibiotic resistant bacteria. One of the problems with "heavy duty" antibiotics is that they kill more
than the bacteria that are making you sick they also kill the bacteria in our body that is good for us so
scientist are coming up with new treatments for instance they have altered the gene sequence of a
bacteria that drills through other bacteria, to only drill through certain bacteria. 'The bacterium
Pseudomonas aeruginosa naturally produces proteins that drill holes in other bacteria, disabling or
killing them. AvidBiotics uses genetic engineering techniques to tweak these toxic compounds so that
they specically target one dangerous pathogen, like C. di#cile or the Escherichia coli O157:H7 strain
that causes bloody diarrhea and, sometimes, fatal kidney failure. When tested in mice, the C. di#cile
ghting compound protects against infection without killing normal gut bacteria.' http://alj.am/
1k7phn5 (3) another way doctors and scientist are coming up with is something known as phage
therapy, it's where you have a "predatory" virus that's introduced into the body and it attacks
unwanted bacteria. These are the measures that people are going to help the failing antibiotics.

With antibiotic resistant bacteria (superbugs) becoming more common we are in need of new ways to
stop superbugs. Find where and what the superbugs are and how they evolved so that in the future
we can stop them better.




Bibliography
1. http://textbookofbacteriology.net/resantimicrobial_3.html
2.http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/05/140501-superbugs-antibiotics-resistance-
disease-medicine/
3. http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/5/22/a-new-wave-of-
superbugkillersinventionstocombatdrugresistantbugs.html