Department of Chemical Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802-4400, USA.
Environ Microbiol. 2018 Jun;20(6):2085-2098. doi: 10.1111/1462-2920.14093. Epub 2018 Mar 26.
Since persister cells survive antibiotic treatments through dormancy and resuscitate to reconstitute infections, it is imperative to determine the rate at which these cells revive. Using two sets of Escherichia coli persister cells, those arising after antibiotic treatment at low levels and those generated at high levels by ceasing transcription via rifampicin pretreatment (shown to be bona fide persisters through eight sets of experiments), we used microscopy of single cells to determine that the resuscitation of dormant persisters is heterogeneous and includes cells that grow immediately. In all, five phenotypes were found during the observation of persister cells when fresh nutrients were added: (i) immediate division, (ii) immediate elongation followed by division, (iii) immediate elongation but no division, (iv) delayed elongation/division and (v) no growth. In addition, once cell division begins, the growth rate is that of exponential cells. Critically, the greater the ribosome content, the faster the persister cells resuscitate.
由于持留细胞通过休眠来耐受抗生素治疗，并在复苏后重新引发感染，因此必须确定这些细胞复苏的速度。使用两组大肠杆菌持留细胞，一组是在低水平抗生素处理后产生的，另一组是通过利福平预处理（通过八组实验证明是真正的持留细胞）停止转录产生的。我们使用单细胞显微镜来确定休眠持留细胞的复苏是异质的，包括能够立即生长的细胞。在添加新鲜营养物质时，观察到持留细胞时共发现了五种表型：（i）立即分裂，（ii）立即延长后分裂，（iii）立即延长但不分裂，（iv）延迟延长/分裂，和（v）不生长。此外，一旦细胞开始分裂，其生长速度就与指数期细胞相同。关键是，核糖体含量越高，持留细胞复苏得越快。
