Definition for Antibiotic resistance
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Plasmids generally contain genes which confer on the host bacterium the ability to survive a given antibiotic. If the plasmid pBR322 is present in a host, that host will not be killed by (moderate levels of) ampicillin or tetracycline. By using plasmids containing antibiotic resistance genes, the researcher can kill off all the bacteria which have not taken up his plasmid, thus ensuring that the plasmid will be propagated as the surviving cells divide.