[How an antibiotic resistance mechanism promotes bacterial virulence]

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a major cause of severe hospital-acquired infections, is a bacterial pathogen whose increasing resistance to antibiotics poses a significant public health threat. The cprA gene, known to confer resistance to colistin, a last-resort antibiotic, also plays a critical role in the production of specific bacterial extracellular vesicles. When the bacteria is exposed to colistin, these vesicles display enhanced capacity to activate the inflammasome, a process associated with a blockage of autophagic flux. Thus, the induction of cprA expression in response to colistin not only promotes antibiotic resistance but also amplifies bacterial virulence by exacerbating inflammation.