Costerton J W, Lambe D W, Mayberry-Carson K J, Tober-Meyer B
Can J Microbiol. 1987 Feb;33(2):142-50. doi: 10.1139/m87-025.
When cells of both Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis are grown in batch culture in nutrient-rich media, their cell walls are regular in thickness, their cell size is within the normal range for each species, and their septation patterns are orderly. When cells of each of these species are examined directly in infected tissue in the rabbit tibia model infection, their cell wall thickness is often much increased and very irregular around the circumference of the cell, their cell size is often increased, and their septation patterns are often severely deranged. All of these alterations in cell wall structure occur in the absence of antibiotics, and we suggest that they may be an expression of phenotypic plasticity in response to altered environmental conditions such as specific nutrient limitations, the presence of antibacterial factors, and growth of the cells on hard surfaces such as rabbit bone or plastic catheters. Some of these specific cell wall alterations are also seen when staphylococcal cells are exposed, in vitro or in vivo, to antibiotics such as clindamycin, but we emphasize that growth in tissue alone is sufficient for their induction.
当金黄色葡萄球菌和表皮葡萄球菌的细胞在营养丰富的培养基中进行分批培养时，它们的细胞壁厚度规则，细胞大小在每个物种的正常范围内，且其分隔模式有序。当在兔胫骨模型感染的感染组织中直接检查这些物种的细胞时，它们的细胞壁厚度通常会大幅增加，且在细胞周长周围非常不规则，细胞大小通常会增加，其分隔模式也常常严重紊乱。所有这些细胞壁结构的改变都发生在没有抗生素的情况下，我们认为它们可能是表型可塑性的一种表现，以应对环境条件的改变，如特定营养物质的限制、抗菌因子的存在以及细胞在诸如兔骨或塑料导管等坚硬表面上的生长。当葡萄球菌细胞在体外或体内暴露于克林霉素等抗生素时，也会出现一些这些特定的细胞壁改变，但我们强调仅在组织中的生长就足以诱导这些改变。
