Life Sciences Commons^™

Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria In Natural Environments Within Kentucky., Steve Tran

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Honors Theses

Rates of antibiotic resistance in bacteria are rapidly rising; this is, in part, due to overuse of antibiotics resulting in a great burden on the U.S. healthcare system. With the rise of resistant bacteria, a large-scale outbreak of antibiotic resistant bacterial infections may also occur. Research on developing antibiotics has also decreased. Thus healthcare is at a great disadvantage in the arms race against bacteria. The environmental reservoirs of antibiotic resistance are currently being explored in Kentucky, in which bacteria have been collected from a broad spectrum of natural environments to analyze their antibiotic resistant capabilities and their interactions with …