Relationship and conversion between persisters and antimicrobial resistant bacteria / 中华微生物学和免疫学杂志

ABSTRACT

Persisters are a sub-population of bacteria that can survive lethal concentrations of antibiotics.They contribute to recurrent or intractable chronic infections.Persisters can emerge as a result of multiple mechanisms which lead to drug tolerance.Unlike antimicrobial resistance which usually acquires genetic mutation, phenotypes of persisters are non-inheritable.Despite the distinct difference between persistence and resistance, recent studies have demonstrated that not only persistence can be observed in resistant mutants, but also persisters themselves can be regarded as an intermediate state which promotes the emergence of resistance.This review focuses on mechanisms of drug tolerance in persisters, phenomena of persistence in antimicrobial resistant bacteria and possible mechanisms of the conversion of persisters to resistant bacteria.Moreover, future research directions are also prospected is this review.