Overview
- University of Edinburgh researchers uncovered how a bacterial Rtc system repairs damaged RNA to sustain protein production under antibiotic stress.
- The work combines computational modelling with laboratory experiments in E. coli to map how this repair pathway preserves growth during drug exposure.
- Expression of the Rtc system varies between individual cells, creating unpredictable treatment responses that can leave subsets of bacteria alive.
- The authors propose developing inhibitors of key Rtc components to enhance the potency of existing antibiotics, noting the concept remains preclinical.
- Findings were published in Nature Communications with contributions from Queen Mary University of London and Imperial College London, supported by BBSRC, the Leverhulme Trust and Wellcome.