Do antibiotics maintain antibiotic resistance?
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 16, 2026

High-throughput Screening of Chemical Compounds to Elucidate Their Effects on Bacterial Persistence
Published on: February 23, 2021
Heinemann1, Ankenbauer, Amábile-Cuevas
1Department of Plant and Microbial Sciences, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Abstract:
Important human pathogens resistant to antibiotics result from the human use of antibiotics. Does this imply that reducing their usage or removing antibiotics from medicine and agriculture will restore the effectiveness of these drugs? The authors argue that resistance evolution and susceptibility evolution are not, in a sense, just different sides of the same coin. Resistance genes acquire new functions and the initial costs of resistance can evolve into advantages. Decreasing drug use might not replace a fundamental change in drug design to avoid the evolution of resistant, and encourage the evolution of susceptible, microorganisms.
Related Concept Videos
Development of Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotic Selection
Microbiota Modulation by Antibiotics
Mechanism of Antibiotic Resistance in MRSA
Clinical Significance of Antibiotic Resistance
Pharmacokinetic–Pharmacodynamic Relationship: Influence of Elimination Half-Life on Effect Duration
