Predatory bacteria are being explored as potential treatments against antibiotic-resistant infections. Researchers from DQBM’s Kümmerli Lab, UZH’s Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and the Functional Genomics Center Zurich investigated whether bacterial prey can evolve resistance to these predators.
Repeated exposure to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus selected for resistance in laboratory E. coli, with stronger predation pressure favouring resistance. Genetic and protein analyses identified reduced levels of the outer membrane protein OmpF as a common mechanism. However, resistant bacteria generally grew more slowly when predators were absent.
The findings show that evolutionary escape can come with substantial costs. Understanding this trade-off could inform the development of predatory bacteria as “living antibiotics”, although further research using clinical strains and host-relevant conditions is needed.
Read the publication in The ISME Journal