INTRODUCTION“Antimicrobial resistance is the resistance of a microorganism to an antimicrobial to which it was previously sensitive”. (Media center, 2012)Bacteria and viruses can become resistant and able to resist antimicrobials such as detergents, antibiotics and antivirals. These standard treatments for controlling bacteria and viruses become ineffective and allow infections to persist and spread. (Media center, 2012)WHAT ARE BACTERIA?Bacteria have existed for a long time. They are small cells that live in the environment and can be single or in groups. Bacteria like their environment to be warm, dark, and moist. Bacteria have three different shapes: spiral (spirilla), rod-shaped (bacilli, bacilli) and round (cocci). http://www.east-buc.k12.ia.us /Ins/00-01/HS/le1.GIFBacteria reproduce by binary fission and asexual reproduction. Binary fusion is where one bacterium splits into two bacteria. asexual reproduction is when two organisms are needed to create one.ReproductionENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT SUPPORT LIVING ORGANISMSThere are several environmental factors that influence the growth of bacteria. These factors include nutrients, temperature, pH, pressure (osmotic and barometric), and gas requirements. (Engelikirk and Burton, 2007)NutrientsEvery living organism, including bacteria, requires nutrients to survive. Bacteria get their energy by breaking the chemical bonds of these chemicals. Nutrients also provide sources of hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, phosphorus, nitrogen, sulfur and other elements and trace elements essential for the growth and survival of bacteria. (Engelikirk and Burton, 2007)TemperatureMicroorganisms have a specific temperature at which they grow best, this...... middle of paper......n. The main mechanisms of antimicrobial agents include inhibition of cell wall synthesis, damage to cell membranes, inhibition of nucleic acid synthesis, inhibition of protein synthesis, and inhibition of enzymatic activity. Antimicrobial agents do not normally cause an allergic reaction in the host, but some do. They are normally stable in solid or liquid form and remain long enough in tissues to be effective and normally kill pathogens before they mutate and become resistant. (Engelkirk and Burton, 2007)EXPERIMENT ON THE INVESTIGATION OF MICROBES AND MICROBIAL RESISTANCEDifferent antimicrobial agents will have different degrees of effectiveness against microbes. You can design an experiment to observe the effectiveness of different antimicrobial agents on a specific microbe – Staphylococcus epidermidis – by performing an exclusion zone experiment.