Our research group has been studying the effects of antibiotic resistance in our society. We chose to study this topic because it is a major issue that is affecting people all over the world. Our research project involved us learning about antibiotics from the beginning; when they were first produced, how they work, why bacteria are becoming resistant to the antibiotics, and what has been done to prevent resistance from growing. We have read and summarized various articles from scientific journals, and gathered information from a variety of sources including the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization to learn about current approaches to slowing down this issue. We have discovered that antibiotic resistance is a product of the evolution of bacteria, which is a completely natural process. But the evolution has been exacerbated by the overprescription and misuse of antibiotics. Past initiatives have failed, such as creating new antibiotics and creating education programs to show how antibiotics should be used, so not much is being done to improve the issue. Our research helps bring to light new research that can create new solutions to stop resistance, including synthetic biology.
Authors: Mariah Craft, Aidan Kelley, Martin Newberry, Laurel Riley, Taylor Wallace
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Michael Kennedy, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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