Use the information in the following paragraph to answer the next few questions.
A hypothetical bacterium swims among human intestinal contents until it finds a suitable location on the intestinal lining. It adheres to the intestinal lining using a feature that also protects it from phagocytes, bacteriophages, and dehydration. Fecal matter from a human in whose intestine this bacterium lives can spread the bacterium, even after being mixed with water and boiled. The bacterium is not susceptible to the penicillin family of antibiotics. It contains no plasmids and relatively little peptidoglycan.
-This bacterium's ability to survive in a human who is taking penicillin pills may be due to the presence of which of the following? 1. penicillin-resistance genes
2) a secretory system that removes penicillin from the cell
3) a gram-positive cell wall
4) a gram-negative cell wall
5) an endospore
A) 1 or 5
B) 2 or 3
C) 4 or 5
D) 2, 3, or 5
E) 2, 4, or 5

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The bacterium's resistance to penicillin and survival after boiling suggests it may have a gram-negative cell wall (which has less peptidoglycan and is less susceptible to penicillin) or an endospore (which can survive extreme conditions). A secretory system could also help remove penicillin, contributing to resistance.

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