Watch this 2-minute video (www.youtube.com/watch?v=plVk4NVIUh8). It captures the evolution of mutant strains of Escherichia coli over 11 days, demonstrating their increasing resistance to ciprofloxacin on an agar plate the size of a dinner table. The E. coli evolved from being unable to grow in ciprofloxacin 0.5g/ml, to being able to grow in ciprofloxacin 10,000g/ml.

Bacteria such as E. coli and Neisseria gonorrhoeae can rapidly become completely resistant to ciprofloxacin as the result of only one or two mutations in their genes.

This is the reason that ciprofloxacin, and related quinolone antibiotics should not be prescribed if other antibiotics can be used instead.

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