Stress-induced adaptive morphogenesis in bacteria

Abstract

Bacteria thrive in virtually all environments. Like all other living organisms, bacteria may encounter various types of stresses, to which cells need to adapt. In this chapter, we describe how cells cope with stressful conditions and how this may lead to dramatic morphological changes. These changes may not only allow harmless cells to withstand environmental insults but can also benefit pathogenic bacteria by enabling them to escape from the immune system and the activity of antibiotics. A better understanding of stress-induced morphogenesis will help us to develop new approaches to combat such harmful pathogens.

Keywords: Adaptation; Cell shape; Cell wall-deficient cells; Filamentation; Morphogenesis; Nucleoid organization; Sporulation; Stalks; Stress; Swarming; VBNC cells.