Dr. Heer Mehta: Antibiotic Resistance and Experimental Evolution

Dr. Heer Mehta first goes over some basics of what antibiotic resistance is, why it is a global concern, and some related history. Dr. Mehta explains how bacteria are able to evolve to become resistant to antibiotics. She goes on further to explain how experimental evolution is one way scientists can understand this process and potentially use as a weapon in humanity’s battle against antibiotic resistant pathogens. She explains additional tools we can use such as microscopy and genome sequencing. We walk through how experimental evolution is setup, how the full experiment proceeds, and the final results that can be obtained. Additional topics discussed include pharmacodynamics and hypermutation.