Microbiology: A Systems Approach 4th Edition by Marjorie Kelly Cowan

Exercise 23

From chapter 12, figure 12.15. Assume that the growth on the first plate represents normal intestinal microbiota. How could you use these illustrations to explain the development of C. difficile -associated colitis

Figure 12.15: The role of antimicrobials in disrupting microbial biota and causing superinfections. (a) A primary infection in the throat is treated with an oral antibiotic. (b) The drug is carried to the intestine and is absorbed into the circulation. (c) The primary infection is cured, but drug-resistant pathogens have survived and create an intestinal superinfection.