Drug Resistance Rising Among Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Cases Essay

Drug Resistance Rising Among Mycobacterium tuberculosis Cases Abstract Drug resistance has been increasing among patients infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Previous miracle drugs that were used in the 1950s have now been proven useless in many cases simply because the bacteria are not susceptible to antibiotics such as isoniazid, rifampin, pyrazinamide, etc. when they are taken. This pathogen is easily transmitted through air and has the capability of attacking the respiratory system and creating fatal consequences if not treated properly. A lot of people who contribute to the antibiotic resistant statistics are those that do not take medication accordingly. Even though the bacterium may not be resistant at first, it can eventually become resistant when it exchanges genes with already resistant bacterium. This paper will focus on specific antibiotics and their abilities to fight drug resistance. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was once phenomenally cured by simple antibiotics such as isoniazid, rifampin, streptomycin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol, but recently, this pathogen has become antibiotic resistant to once useful drugs (Davies, 1999). Antibiotic resistance occurs when microorganisms become immune to specific drugs that are prescribed by doctors to kill other microorganisms. Usually, bacteria can be eradicated because they are single celled organisms but when drugs become defiant, they do not function properly. When antibiotics are taken, they enter the bloodstream and interfere with all microbes in the body while also altering body functions (Bren FDA, 2003). Sometimes antibiotics may not necessarily target its â€Å"wanted† target but instead, they attack both harmful and benign bacteria. When the bacteria that are sus... ...inistration. 7-27-05: http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/402_bugs.html Davies, P. (1999, March). Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis. Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis. 7-27-05: http://www.priory.com/cmol/TBMultid.htm Kimball, J. (2003, August). Genetic Recombination in Bacteria. Genetic Recombination in Bacteria. 7-27-05: http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/A/Avery.html Padilla, M. (2005). Tuberculosis. Encarta. 7-27-05: http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576449/Tuberculosis.html Somoskovi, A. (2001, April). The Molecular Basis of Resistance to Isoniazid, Rifampin, and Pyrazinamide in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Respiratory Research. 7-27-05: http://respiratory-research.com/content/2/3/164 (2005). Pathology of TB. The Internet Pathology Laboratory for Medical Education. 7-27-05: http://www-medlib.med.utah.edu/WebPath/TUTORIAL/MTB/MTB.html