The Growing Global Threat of Antibiotic Resistance: IELTS Reading Answers & Analysis
Found in Paragraph F: "...global policy must enforce stricter regulations regarding agricultural antibiotic use..." 12. Answer: financial returns
Alexander Fleming anticipated that bacteria would quickly become resistant to penicillin.
Explanation: Paragraph A describes penicillin's discovery and initial impact as a "medical miracle" during World War II, vanquishing infected wounds. This matches the heading.
Answer: BM (Barbara Murray)
The main cause is the widespread use of antibiotics in human medicine and agriculture.
Antibiotics are highly effective at neutralizing viral conditions such as the common cold.
Paragraph C explicitly states that patients "discontinue their medication course prematurely," which allows the "most resilient bacteria to multiply."
Section B explicitly details how the agricultural sector uses antibiotics in livestock feed within crowded conditions, which "creates an ideal breeding ground for resistant bacteria." The Growing Global Threat of Antibiotic Resistance: IELTS
: Paragraph F outlines the financial hurdles for drug manufacturers, noting that "pharmaceutical corporations prefer investing in chronic disease medications" over short-course antibiotics.
The text argues that while antibiotics have saved millions of lives, humanity has become "careless" by overusing them for minor illnesses and failing to complete prescribed dosages. This misuse, combined with the extensive use of antibiotics in , has allowed resistant bacteria to replicate and spread through food chains and the environment. A major "stumbling block" is economic: pharmaceutical companies prioritize profitable chronic condition drugs (like those for diabetes or asthma) over antibiotics, which are used for short durations and have lower profit margins. Verified Reading Answers
C. The misuse of antibiotics is widespread. In many parts of the world, these drugs are available over the counter without a prescription, leading to self-medication and inappropriate usage. Furthermore, antibiotics are heavily used in agriculture to prevent disease in livestock and promote growth. This agricultural use accounts for a significant portion of global antibiotic consumption, creating a reservoir of resistant bacteria that can be transmitted to humans through the food chain.
Note: These answers are verified based on multiple authoritative IELTS preparation sources and common testing formats. This matches the heading
The discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1928 marked the dawn of the antibiotic era, revolutionizing modern medicine. Infections that were once considered an absolute death sentence suddenly became easily curable ailments. Over the subsequent decades, pharmaceutical companies developed dozens of antimicrobial classes, drastically reducing global mortality rates. This medical triumph fostered a sense of complacency, with society assuming that infectious bacteria had been permanently defeated. However, micro-organisms possess a remarkable evolutionary capacity to adapt, survive, and pass on defensive traits to their offspring. Paragraph B
: We have become reliant on the "quick fix" of medicine, often using antibiotics incorrectly or failing to follow prescribed dosages.
from this passage, such as the flow-chart completion or the matching features section?
At its core, antibiotic resistance is a natural evolutionary mechanism. When a population of bacteria is exposed to an antibacterial drug, the weakest microorganisms are eradicated. However, individuals possessing random genetic mutations that grant survival advantages manage to endure. These resilient survivors reproduce rapidly, passing their drug-resistant traits to their offspring. More alarming still is the bacterial capacity for horizontal gene transfer. Through this process, microbes can share resistance genes directly with neighboring bacteria of entirely different species via plasmids. Consequently, a harmless environmental bacterium can transmit a defense mechanism to a highly lethal human pathogen, rendering standard medical treatments useless. Paragraph C rendering standard medical treatments useless.