Bacterial cheating drives the population dynamics of cooperative antibiotic resistance plasmids.

ABSTRACT: Inactivation of β-lactam antibiotics by resistant bacteria is a 'cooperative' behavior that may allow sensitive bacteria to survive antibiotic treatment. However, the factors that determine the fraction of resistant cells in the bacterial population remain unclear, indicating a fundamental gap in our understanding of how antibiotic resistance evolves. Here, we experimentally track the spread of a plasmid that encodes a β-lactamase enzyme through the bacterial population. We find that independent of the initial fraction of resistant cells, the population settles to an equilibrium fraction proportional to the antibiotic concentration divided by the cell density. A simple model explains this behavior, successfully predicting a data collapse over two orders of magnitude in antibiotic concentra

SUBMITTER: Yurtsev EA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3779801 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature