The Dynamic Transition of Persistence toward the Viable but Nonculturable State during Stationary Phase Is Driven by Protein Aggregation.

ABSTRACT: Decades of research into bacterial persistence has been unable to fully characterize this antibiotic-tolerant phenotype, thereby hampering the development of therapies effective against chronic infections. Although some active persister mechanisms have been identified, the prevailing view is that cells become persistent because they enter a dormant state. We therefore characterized starvation-induced dormancy in Escherichia coli. Our findings indicate that dormancy develops gradually; persistence strongly increases during stationary phase and decreases again as persisters enter the viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state. Importantly, we show that dormancy development is tightly associated with progressive protein aggregation, which occurs concomitantly with ATP depletion during starvation.

SUBMITTER: Dewachter L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8406143 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature