E. coli bacteria exposed to three common antibiotics were more likely to develop antibiotic resistance following low-level antibiotic exposure than after exposure to high concentrations that would kill the bacteria or inhibit their growth, according to a timely article in Microbial Drug Resistance, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. E. coli bacteria in food and water supplies have been responsible for disease outbreaks and deaths around the world in recent years. The current outbreak in Europe has sickened thousands of individuals and caused multiple deaths and life-threatening complications in hundreds of persons infected with a new strain of E. coli.
