Stochastic expression of a multiple antibiotic resistance activator confers transient resistance in single cells.

ABSTRACT: Transient resistance can allow microorganisms to temporarily survive lethal concentrations of antibiotics. This can be accomplished through stochastic mechanisms, where individual cells within a population display diverse phenotypes to hedge against the appearance of an antibiotic. To date, research on transient stochastic resistance has focused primarily on mechanisms where a subpopulation of cells enters a dormant, drug-tolerant state. However, a fundamental question is whether stochastic gene expression can also generate variable resistance levels among growing cells in a population. We hypothesized that stochastic expression of antibiotic-inducible resistance mechanisms might play such a role. To investigate this, we focused on a prototypical example of such a system: the multiple anti

SUBMITTER: El Meouche I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4725842 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature