Persister Cells
All bacterial populations stochastically produce a small number of dormant persister cells tolerant to antibiotics. Persisters are not mutants but phenotypic variants of the wild type.
We are interested in discovering the mechanism of persister formation. Using cell sorting and transcriptome analysis, we find that chromosomally-encoded "toxin" genes act to shut down cellular functions, creating a dormant state. Examples include HipA, which encodes a protein kinase that phosphorylates elongation factor Ef-Tu, blocking protein synthesis, and TisB, a small peptide that inserts in the membrane, causing a drop in pmf and ATP levels. Interestingly, TisB synthesis is induced by DNA damaging agents, including fluoroquinolone antibiotics. This means that persisters can be formed not only stochastically, but through stress response mechanisms.
We find that in chronic infections such as cystic fibrosis, antibiotic treatment selects for high-persister mutants. Whole genome sequencing indicates the mechanism for increased production of persisters.
Current projects involve the study of the molecular mechanisms of persister formation governed by HipA and TisB in E. coli; the search for persister genes in P. aeruginosa, S. aureus and M. tuberculosis; and characterization of high-persister mutants from clinical isolates of these pathogens. A related project is discovery of compounds capable of eliminating persisters. The work of the persister group is supported by a Transformative Award from the NIH, and with grants from ARO and CF Foundation.
Video courtesy of 3dcienciaMembers:
Vincent IsabellaSarah Rowe
Sonja Hansen
Pooja Balani
Alyssa Theodore
Jennifer Greenwich
Autumn Brown
Yeva Yue Shan
Persister Cells Selected Publications:
Sonja Hansen, Marin Vulic, Jungki Min, Tien-Jui Yen, Maria A. Schumacher, Richard G. Brennan, Kim Lewis (2012) Regulation of the Escherichia coli hipBA toxin-antitoxin system by proteolysis. PLoS ONE. 7(6):e39185. [PDF]
Schumacher, M.A., Piro, K.M., Xu, W., Hansen, S., Lewis, K., and Brennan, R.G. (2009). Molecular Mechanisms of HipA Mediated Multidrug Tolerance and its Neutralization by HipB. [PDF]
Hansen S, Lewis K, Vulić M. (2008). Role of global regulators and nucleotide metabolism in antibiotic tolerance in Escherichia coli. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 52(8):2718-26. [PDF]Lewis K. (2008).Multidrug tolerance of biofilms and persister cells. Curr Top Microbiol Immunol. 322:107-31. Review.
Lewis, K. (2007) Persister cells, dormancy and infectious disease. Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 5:48-56. [PDF]