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Plasmid-mediated phenotypic noise leads to transient antibiotic resistance in bacteria

Author

Listed:
  • J. Carlos R. Hernandez-Beltran

    (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
    Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology)

  • Jerónimo Rodríguez-Beltrán

    (Ramón y Cajal University Hospital (IRYCIS) and CIBERINFEC)

  • Oscar Bruno Aguilar-Luviano

    (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México)

  • Jesús Velez-Santiago

    (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México)

  • Octavio Mondragón-Palomino

    (National Institutes of Health)

  • R. Craig MacLean

    (University of Oxford)

  • Ayari Fuentes-Hernández

    (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México)

  • Alvaro San Millán

    (Centro Nacional de Biotecnología - CSIC)

  • Rafael Peña-Miller

    (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México)

Abstract

The rise of antibiotic resistance is a critical public health concern, requiring an understanding of mechanisms that enable bacteria to tolerate antimicrobial agents. Bacteria use diverse strategies, including the amplification of drug-resistance genes. In this paper, we showed that multicopy plasmids, often carrying antibiotic resistance genes in clinical bacteria, can rapidly amplify genes, leading to plasmid-mediated phenotypic noise and transient antibiotic resistance. By combining stochastic simulations of a computational model with high-throughput single-cell measurements of blaTEM-1 expression in Escherichia coli MG1655, we showed that plasmid copy number variability stably maintains populations composed of cells with both low and high plasmid copy numbers. This diversity in plasmid copy number enhances the probability of bacterial survival in the presence of antibiotics, while also rapidly reducing the burden of carrying multiple plasmids in drug-free environments. Our results further support the tenet that multicopy plasmids not only act as vehicles for the horizontal transfer of genetic information between cells but also as drivers of bacterial adaptation, enabling rapid modulation of gene copy numbers. Understanding the role of multicopy plasmids in antibiotic resistance is critical, and our study provides insights into how bacteria can transiently survive lethal concentrations of antibiotics.

Suggested Citation

  • J. Carlos R. Hernandez-Beltran & Jerónimo Rodríguez-Beltrán & Oscar Bruno Aguilar-Luviano & Jesús Velez-Santiago & Octavio Mondragón-Palomino & R. Craig MacLean & Ayari Fuentes-Hernández & Alvaro San , 2024. "Plasmid-mediated phenotypic noise leads to transient antibiotic resistance in bacteria," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-45045-0
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45045-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. A. San Millan & R. Peña-Miller & M. Toll-Riera & Z. V. Halbert & A. R. McLean & B. S. Cooper & R. C. MacLean, 2014. "Positive selection and compensatory adaptation interact to stabilize non-transmissible plasmids," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-11, December.
    2. Henry H. Lee & Michael N. Molla & Charles R. Cantor & James J. Collins, 2010. "Bacterial charity work leads to population-wide resistance," Nature, Nature, vol. 467(7311), pages 82-85, September.
    3. Bin Shao & Jayan Rammohan & Daniel A. Anderson & Nina Alperovich & David Ross & Christopher A. Voigt, 2021. "Single-cell measurement of plasmid copy number and promoter activity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
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