Contents:
1. Magic Bullets 2. That's Funny 3. Development of Modern Antibiotics 4. Paradise Lost 5. Sharing Knowledge 6. Identifying the Enemy 7. Intensive Farming 8. The doomsday Scenario 9. Antibiotic Resistance in Modern Healthcare 10. The Future of Antibiotics

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Bacteria form a fundamental branch of life. They are the oldest forms of life as we know it, and they are still the most prolific living organisms. They inhabit every part of the Earth's surface, its ocean depths, and even terrains such as boiling hot springs. They are most familiar as agents of disease, but benign bacteria are critical to the recycling of elements and all ecology, as well as to human health. In this Very Short Introduction, Sebastian G. B. Amyes explores the nature of bacteria, their origin and evolution, bacteria in the environment, and bacteria and disease. In this new edition, he examines the ethical implications of synthetic bacteria, the evolving technologies used to combat antibiotics resistance, and the role bacteria play in the evolutionary development of humans. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

From the day that Paul Ehrlich hailed his newly discovered treatment for syphilis as the 'magic bullet', antibiotics have transformed medical practice and are considered to be one of the miracle drugs of the 20th Century. However, the massive and increasing misuse of these agents is causing a problem of resistance that may prove to be one of the greates threats to health in the 21st Century.
Magic Bullets, Lost Horizons aims to put some of the media sensationalism into perspective.