Stepwise Evolution of E. coli C and ΦX174 Reveals Unexpected Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) Diversity.

ABSTRACT: Phage therapy is a promising method for the treatment of multidrug-resistant bacterial infections. However, its long-term efficacy depends on understanding the evolutionary effects of the treatment. Current knowledge of such evolutionary effects is lacking, even in well-studied systems. We used the bacterium Escherichia coli C and its bacteriophage ΦX174, which infects cells using host lipopolysaccharide (LPS) molecules. We first generated 31 bacterial mutants resistant to ΦX174 infection. Based on the genes disrupted by these mutations, we predicted that these E. coli C mutants collectively produce eight unique LPS structures. We then developed a series of evolution experiments to select for ΦX174 mutants capable of infecting the resistant strains. During phage adaptation, we distinguishe

SUBMITTER: Romeyer Dherbey J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10368449 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature