CRISPR-Cas in Pseudomonas aeruginosa provides transient population-level immunity against high phage exposures.

ABSTRACT: The prokaryotic adaptive immune system, CRISPR-Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats; CRISPR-associated), requires the acquisition of spacer sequences that target invading mobile genetic elements such as phages. Previous work has identified ecological variables that drive the evolution of CRISPR-based immunity of the model organism Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14 against its phage DMS3vir, resulting in rapid phage extinction. However, it is unclear if and how stable such acquired immunity is within bacterial populations, and how this depends on the environment. Here, we examine the dynamics of CRISPR spacer acquisition and loss over a 30-day evolution experiment and identify conditions that tip the balance between long-term maintenance of immunity versus invasion of al

SUBMITTER: Watson BNJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10873826 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature