Journal
MICROORGANISMS
Volume 9, Issue 11, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9112269
Keywords
self-digestion; autophagy; bacterial persisters; intracellular degradation; stationary-phase metabolism; protein degradation; RNA degradation; lipid degradation; viable but non-culturable cells
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Funding
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institute of Health [R01-AI143643]
- University of Houston start-up grant
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Cellular self-digestion is an evolutionarily conserved process in prokaryotic cells that enables survival under stressful conditions by recycling essential energy molecules, although it can also render cells less fit for growth when exposed to fresh nutrients. This process may also provide temporary protection from antibiotics until the damage is repaired.
Cellular self-digestion is an evolutionarily conserved process occurring in prokaryotic cells that enables survival under stressful conditions by recycling essential energy molecules. Self-digestion, which is triggered by extracellular stress conditions, such as nutrient depletion and overpopulation, induces degradation of intracellular components. This self-inflicted damage renders the bacterium less fit to produce building blocks and resume growth upon exposure to fresh nutrients. However, self-digestion may also provide temporary protection from antibiotics until the self-digestion-mediated damage is repaired. In fact, many persistence mechanisms identified to date may be directly or indirectly related to self-digestion, as these processes are also mediated by many degradative enzymes, including proteases and ribonucleases (RNases). In this review article, we will discuss the potential roles of self-digestion in bacterial persistence.
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