AQA · Biology · 8461
GCSE Biology: Resistant bacteria
Inheritance, variation and evolution · AQA GCSE Biology (8461), specification point 4.6.3.7. Cards are generated from the exam board's own specification for "Resistant bacteria", and every card links back to the page it came from. Specification © AQA — used with attribution.
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Why can bacteria evolve rapidly?
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Because they reproduce at a fast rate, so mutations accumulate quickly across generations.
What produces new strains of bacterial pathogens?
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Mutations.
Why does the population of an antibiotic-resistant bacterial strain rise?
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Resistant bacteria are not killed by the antibiotic, so they survive and reproduce while non-resistant bacteria die.
Give two reasons an antibiotic-resistant bacterial strain spreads between people.
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People are not immune to it, and there is no effective treatment.
Name a bacterium that is resistant to antibiotics.
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MRSA.
Why should doctors avoid prescribing antibiotics for viral infections?
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Antibiotics do not work on viruses, so inappropriate use only increases the rate at which resistant bacterial strains develop.
Why should patients complete their full course of antibiotics?
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So all the bacteria are killed and none survive to mutate and form resistant strains.
To reduce the development of resistant strains, the ? use of antibiotics should be restricted.
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agricultural
Why is the development of new antibiotics unlikely to keep up with resistance?
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Developing new antibiotics is costly and slow, whereas new resistant strains emerge quickly.
Name the three ways to slow the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
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Doctors should not prescribe antibiotics inappropriately; patients should complete their course; agricultural use of antibiotics should be restricted.
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