Genomics of rapid adaptation to antibiotics: convergent evolution and scalable sequence amplification.

ABSTRACT: Evolutionary adaptation can be extremely fast, especially in response to high selection intensities. A prime example is the surge of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. The genomic underpinnings of such rapid changes may provide information on the genetic processes that enhance fast responses and the particular trait functions under selection. Here, we use experimentally evolved Escherichia coli for a detailed dissection of the genomics of rapid antibiotic resistance evolution. Our new analyses demonstrate that amplification of a sequence region containing several known antibiotic resistance genes represents a fast genomic response mechanism under high antibiotic stress, here exerted by drug combination. In particular, higher dosage of such antibiotic combinations coincided with higher copy

SUBMITTER: Laehnemann D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4079197 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature