Estimating mutation rates under heterogeneous stress responses.

ABSTRACT: Exposure to environmental stressors, including certain antibiotics, induces stress responses in bacteria. Some of these responses increase mutagenesis and thus potentially accelerate resistance evolution. Many studies report increased mutation rates under stress, often using the standard experimental approach of fluctuation assays. However, single-cell studies have revealed that many stress responses are heterogeneously expressed in bacterial populations, which existing estimation methods have not yet addressed. We develop a population dynamic model that considers heterogeneous stress responses (subpopulations of cells with the response off or on) that impact both mutation rate and cell division rate, inspired by the DNA-damage response in Escherichia coli (SOS response). We derive the mut

SUBMITTER: Lansch-Justen L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11161091 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature