Examine the figure shown.Which of the following correctly describes how the two organisms pictured would fare if grown in an environment without antibiotics?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Based on the figure, we can see that the small-colony variant has a mutation that makes it unable to produce as much pigment as the original isolate. Since pigment production is energetically costly for the bacteria, the small-colony variant may have an advantage in environments where resources are limited. However, this advantage may come at a cost of decreased virulence or reduced ability to compete with other bacteria. In an environment without antibiotics, the small-colony variant may still have a slight advantage over the original isolate, but it is likely that the original isolate would outcompete the small-colony variant due to its higher degree of virulence and competitiveness. Therefore, choice C is correct. The other choices are incorrect because there is no evidence to suggest that the small-colony variant would outcompete or grow better than the original isolate, and it is unlikely that neither organism would grow in an environment without antibiotics.

Examine the Figure Shown