The genomic basis of adaptation to the fitness cost of rifampicin resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

ABSTRACT: Antibiotic resistance carries a fitness cost that must be overcome in order for resistance to persist over the long term. Compensatory mutations that recover the functional defects associated with resistance mutations have been argued to play a key role in overcoming the cost of resistance, but compensatory mutations are expected to be rare relative to generally beneficial mutations that increase fitness, irrespective of antibiotic resistance. Given this asymmetry, population genetics theory predicts that populations should adapt by compensatory mutations when the cost of resistance is large, whereas generally beneficial mutations should drive adaptation when the cost of resistance is small. We tested this prediction by determining the genomic mechanisms underpinning adaptation to antibiot

SUBMITTER: Qi Q 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4721101 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature