AUTHOR=Morcrette Helen , Kovacs-Simon Andrea , Tennant Richard K. , Love John , Wagley Sariqa , Yang Zheng R. , Studholme David J. , Soyer Orkun S. , Champion Olivia L. , Butler Clive S. , Titball Richard W. TITLE=Campylobacter jejuni 11168H Exposed to Penicillin Forms Persister Cells and Cells With Altered Redox Protein Activity JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology VOLUME=10 YEAR=2020 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2020.565975 DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2020.565975 ISSN=2235-2988 ABSTRACT=

The formation of persister cells is one mechanism by which bacteria can survive exposure to environmental stresses. We show that Campylobacter jejuni 11168H forms persister cells at a frequency of 10−3 after exposure to 100 × MIC of penicillin G for 24 h. Staining the cell population with a redox sensitive fluorescent dye revealed that penicillin G treatment resulted in the appearance of a population of cells with increased fluorescence. We present evidence, to show this could be a consequence of increased redox protein activity in, or associated with, the electron transport chain. These data suggest that a population of penicillin G treated C. jejuni cells could undergo a remodeling of the electron transport chain in order to moderate membrane hyperpolarization and intracellular alkalization; thus reducing the antibiotic efficacy and potentially assisting in persister cell formation.