Work

Wake me when it’s over – Bacterial toxin–antitoxin proteins and induced dormancy

Year: 2016

Type: article

Abstract: Toxin-antitoxin systems are encoded by bacteria and archaea to enable an immediate response to environmental stresses, including antibiotics and the host immune response. During normal conditions, the antitoxin components prevent toxins from interfering with metabolism and arresting growth; however, toxin activation enables microbes to remain dormant through unfavorable conditions that might continue over millions of years. Intense investigations have revealed a multitude of mechanisms for both regulation and activation of toxin-antitoxin systems, which are abundant in pathogenic microorganisms. This minireview provides an overview of the current knowledge regarding type II toxin-antitoxin systems along with their clinical and environmental implications.

Source: Experimental Biology and Medicine

DOI: 10.1177/1535370216651938

Authors: Nathan P Coussens, Dayle A Daines

Institutions: National Institutes of Health, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, Old Dominion University

Language: English

Topic: Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences