The Endospore-Forming Pathogen Bacillus cereus Exploits a Small Colony Variant-Based Diversification Strategy in Response to Aminoglycoside Exposure.

ABSTRACT:

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Bacillus cereus is among the microorganisms most often isolated from cases of food spoilage and causes gastrointestinal diseases as well as nongastrointestinal infections elicited by the emetic toxin cereulide, enterotoxins, and a panel of tissue-destructive virulence factors. This opportunistic pathogen is increasingly associated with rapidly fatal clinical infections especially linked to neonates and immunocompromised individuals. Fatality results from either the misdiagnosis of B. cereus as a contaminant of the clinical specimen or from failure of antibiotic therapy. Here we report for the first time that exposure to aminoglycoside antibiotics induces a phenotype switching of emetic B. cereus subpopulations to a slow-growing small colony variant (SCV) state. Along wit

SUBMITTER: Frenzel E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4676280 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature