A parent bacterial cell is able to survive in the presence of the antibiotic penicillin. Subsequent generations from this parent will be _______ penicillin.

Responses

dependent on
dependent on

resistant to
resistant to

killed by
killed by

vulnerable to

Vulnerable to

resistant to

The subsequent generations of bacterial cells from a parent bacterial cell that is able to survive in the presence of the antibiotic penicillin will be resistant to penicillin.

To understand why subsequent generations will be resistant, we need to understand the concept of bacterial resistance. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics often arises through genetic mutations or the acquisition of resistance genes from other bacteria.

In this case, the parent bacterial cell was able to survive in the presence of penicillin, indicating that it had a preexisting resistance mechanism. This resistance mechanism could be due to a genetic mutation that prevents the antibiotic from effectively targeting and killing the cell, or the parent cell might have acquired a resistance gene from another bacterium through horizontal gene transfer.

When the parent bacterial cell reproduces and creates subsequent generations, the resistance mechanism is typically passed on to its offspring. As a result, the subsequent generations will also possess the same resistance to penicillin. Therefore, the correct response is that subsequent generations will be resistant to penicillin.