The acquisition of traits that lead to antimicrobial resistance often comes with a fitness cost to the bacterial pathogen.
Is it true that the acquisition of traits that lead to antimicrobial resistance often comes with a fitness cost to the bacterial pathogen?
Yes. The acquisition of antimicrobial resistance in bacterial pathogens frequently imposes a physiological fitness cost, resulting in trade-offs such as reduced growth rates or narrower environmental tolerance.
Verdict: SUPPORTED · 6 sources for, 0 against · Last checked
Multiple retrieved papers consistently support the principle that antimicrobial resistance mechanisms incur fitness costs on bacterial pathogens, though these costs can be modulated or mitigated over time through compensatory evolution.
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Lazar, V., Oprea, E., & Ditu, L. (2023). Resistance, Tolerance, Virulence and Bacterial Pathogen Fitness—Current State and Envisioned Solutions for the Near Future. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12050746
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HN, A. (2026). The plasmid-host fitness landscape: a new paradigm for predicting the fate of mobile resistance.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.01983-25
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S, P., M, D., C, U., H, S., & M, M. (2025). Evolution of beta-lactam resistance causes fitness reductions and several cases of collateral sensitivities in the human pathogen <i>Haemophilus influenzae</i>.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1128/aac.00576-25
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Herren, C. M. & Baym, M. (2021). Decreased thermal tolerance as a trade-off of antibiotic resistance. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.04.05.438396
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Helekal, D., Keeling, M., Grad, Y. H., & Didelot, X. (2022). Estimating the fitness cost and benefit of antimicrobial resistance from pathogen genomic data. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.12.02.518824
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J, H. & LA, M. (2026). Simulating the host niche: balancing complexity and control in the experimental evolution of antibiotic resistance and pathoadaptation.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1099/mic.0.001767
What does the evidence say?
Multiple retrieved papers consistently support the principle that antimicrobial resistance mechanisms incur fitness costs on bacterial pathogens, though these costs can be modulated or mitigated over time through compensatory evolution.
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