Compensatory evolution in NusG improves fitness of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38509362/)

These scientists wanted to understand why some bacteria that are resistant to a certain antibiotic called rifampicin are not as strong as the bacteria that are not resistant. Rifampicin is a medicine used to treat tuberculosis, a serious lung disease. Even though rifampicin-resistant bacteria are not as strong, they can still cause a lot of harm.

To figure this out, the scientists looked at the genetic makeup of these bacteria using a special tool called CRISPR interference. They found that a protein called NusG plays a very important role in making the rifampicin-resistant bacteria weaker. In normal bacteria, NusG helps the bacteria to make proteins, but in the rifampicin-resistant bacteria, NusG actually slows down the process of making proteins, which makes the bacteria less strong.

The scientists discovered that in the rifampicin-resistant bacteria, there are changes in the way NusG interacts with other parts of the bacteria, making it less effective in slowing down protein production. This change actually helps the bacteria to become stronger.

By understanding how this works, the scientists hope to find new ways to make rifampicin-resistant bacteria weaker again, so that they can be treated more effectively. This could help in developing new treatments for tuberculosis and other diseases caused by these resistant bacteria.

Eckartt KA., Delbeau M., Munsamy-Govender V., DeJesus MA., Azadian ZA., Reddy AK., Chandanani J., Poulton NC., Quinones-Garcia S., Bosch B., Landick R., Campbell EA., Rock JM. Compensatory evolution in NusG improves fitness of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis. Nature. 2024 Apr;628(8006):186-194. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07206-5. Epub 2024 Mar 20.