Unstable chromosome rearrangements in Staphylococcus aureus cause phenotype switching associated with persistent infections.

ABSTRACT: Staphylococcus aureus small-colony variants (SCVs) are associated with unusually chronic and persistent infections despite active antibiotic treatment. The molecular basis for this clinically important phenomenon is poorly understood, hampered by the instability of the SCV phenotype. Here we investigated the genetic basis for an unstable S. aureus SCV that arose spontaneously while studying rifampicin resistance. This SCV showed no nucleotide differences across its genome compared with a normal-colony variant (NCV) revertant, yet the SCV presented the hallmarks of S. aureus linked to persistent infection: down-regulation of virulence genes and reduced hemolysis and neutrophil chemotaxis, while exhibiting increased survival in blood and ability to invade host cells. Fur

SUBMITTER: Guerillot R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6778178 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature