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Positive selection and compensatory adaptation interact to stabilize non-transmissible plasmids.

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Plasmids can persist in bacteria even without transfer. Compensatory evolution and antibiotic resistance selection work together to maintain costly, non-transmissible plasmids in bacterial populations.

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Area of Science:

  • Bacterial genetics
  • Evolutionary biology
  • Microbial genomics

Background:

  • Plasmids drive bacterial evolution but their long-term persistence is poorly understood due to carriage costs.
  • Classical models emphasize horizontal transfer for plasmid maintenance, yet many plasmids are non-transmissible.
  • Understanding non-transmissible plasmid persistence is crucial for bacterial evolution and antibiotic resistance studies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the maintenance mechanisms of a costly, non-transmissible plasmid (pNUK73) in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  • To determine the roles of compensatory adaptation and selection in plasmid stability.
  • To elucidate how these factors interact to ensure plasmid persistence.

Main Methods:

  • Mathematical modeling of plasmid dynamics.
  • Experimental evolution of Pseudomonas aeruginosa populations carrying pNUK73.
  • Analysis of plasmid stability and bacterial adaptation.

Main Results:

  • Compensatory adaptation significantly reduces the cost of plasmid carriage, enhancing plasmid stability.
  • Positive selection for plasmid-encoded antibiotic resistance is essential to counteract segregational loss.
  • Compensatory adaptation and positive selection act synergistically to maintain non-transmissible plasmids.

Conclusions:

  • Non-transmissible plasmids can persist through a combination of bacterial adaptation and selection.
  • This study offers novel insights into plasmid maintenance strategies in bacterial populations.
  • The findings explain the long-term persistence of antibiotic resistance even after antibiotic withdrawal.