Journal Article
mBio, vol. 10, iss. 5, 2019
Authors
Eliza A. Zalis, Austin S. Nuxoll, Sylvie Manuse, Geremy Clair, Lauren C. Radlinski, Brian P. Conlon, JOSHUA ADKINS, Kim Lewis, Robert A. Bonomo
Abstract
Persister cells are rare phenotypic variants that are able to survive antibiotic treatment. Unlike resistant bacteria, which have specific mechanisms to prevent antibiotics from binding to their targets, persisters evade antibiotic killing by entering a tolerant nongrowing state. Persisters have been implicated in chronic infections in multiple species, and growing evidence suggests that persister cells are responsible for many cases of antibiotic treatment failure. New antibiotic treatment strategies aim to kill tolerant persister cells more effectively, but the mechanism of tolerance has remained unclear until now.
