-derived outer membrane vesicles package β-lactamases to promote antibiotic resistance.

causes the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhoea. The treatment of gonorrhoea is becoming increasingly challenging, as has developed resistance to antimicrobial agents routinely used in the clinic. Resistance to penicillin is wide-spread partly due to the acquisition of β-lactamase genes. How survives an initial exposure to β-lactams before acquiring resistance genes remains to be understood. Here, using a panel of clinical isolates of we show that the β-lactamase enzyme is packaged into outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) by strains expressing or , which protects otherwise susceptible clinical isolates from the β-lactam drug amoxycillin. We characterized the phenotypes of these clinical isolates of and the time courses over which the cross-protection of the strains is effective. Imaging and biochemical assays suggest that OMVs promote the transfer of proteins and lipids between bacteria. Thus, strains secret antibiotic degrading enzymes via OMVs enabling survival of otherwise susceptible bacteria.