Antibiotic Resistance Public Service Announcement (PSA): Did humans create super bacteria?
A shortage of antibiotics in the pharmaceutical pipeline could threaten the health and welfare of people worldwide. New antibiotics are needed to replace those that have become resistant or useless through the evolution of drug-resistant diseases such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, MRSA, a deadly flesh-eating bacteria that has taken thousands of lives globally each year.
There many cases worldwide of antibiotic resistant bacteria that leads to deaths. Aimee Copeland, 24, a student at the University of West Georgia received a cut on her leg from a fall from a zip line. She contracted a rare and aggressive flesh eating bacteria called necrotizing fasciitis. To save her life doctors had to amputate both legs and her hands. She is on the road to recovery, but the bacteria have left its impact. Aimee is one of the lucky cases, about 20% of all necrotizing fasciitis cases die each year. In 2005, 94,000 life-threatening infections and nearly 19,000 deaths resulted from MRSA, accounting for more deaths than AIDS, emphysema or homicide (source: CDC). About 440,000 new cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis emerge annually, causing at least 150,000 deaths.
There are ten times as many bacteria living inside and on your body than your own human body cells. Most of these bacteria live on your skin and in your digestive tract. Most of these bacteria are actually beneficial and vital to your health. Bottom line: You cannot live without bacteria. What if these bacteria evolved into “threatening” diseases? How do bacteria become antibiotic resistant?
Task:
Media has the power to inform us about issues, inspire us to learn more, and incite us to take action. It is your job to create an engaging Public Service Announcement (PSA) to teach people about the threats of antibiotics resistance and what they can do to protect themselves.
Here are some PSA examples:
Typically, PSAs:
Tips:
What to Include:
The purpose of this assignment is to have you explain the process of natural selection and how it takes place. You may use bacteria and antibiotic resistance or another organism of your choosing for your explanation. It should contain an explanation of how the following components cause natural selection to take place.
Standards | Content |
Inheritance and Evolution Construct an explanation based on evidence that the process of evolution primarily results from four factors: (HS-LS4-2) | Explanation demonstrates how bacteria have evolved to become antibiotic resistant by the result of the four following factors:
❑ The ability to successfully reproduce and have excess offspring ❑ Competition for limited resources (food/energy, space/shelter, mates) ❑ Heritable genetic variation (sexual reproduction) ❑ The survival of organisms that are better fit in a changing environment |
❑ Evidence sufficiently supports the explanation. |
Product:
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Task Assignments & Accountability
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