Journal of microbiology, epidemiology and immunobiologyJournal of microbiology, epidemiology and immunobiology0372-93112686-7613Central Research Institute for Epidemiology83210.36233/0372-9311-2020-97-3-10UnknownMolecular Mechanisms оf Persistence оf BacteriaAndryukovBoris G.<p>D. Sci. (Med.), leading researcher, Laboratory of molecular microbiology</p><p>Prof., Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, School of Biomedicine</p>andrukov_bg@mail.ruhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-4456-808XLyapunIrina N.PhD (Med.), researcher, Laboratory of molecular microbiologyirina-lyapun@list.ruhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5290-3864Somov Research Institute of Epidemiology and MicrobiologyPacific State Medical University250620209732712792506202025062020Copyright © 2020, Andryukov B.G., Lyapun I.N.2020<p>A significant mortality rate from infectious diseases is largely mediated by the widespread and uncontrolled use of antibiotics, which has led to the emergence of drug-resistant strains of bacteria. The rapid evolution ofbacterial resistance to antimicrobials is a serious challenge for modern health care, mediates the need to create new antibiotic agents, as well as to intensify the study of molecular mechanisms underlying the formation of microorganism resistance. One of these mechanisms is bacterial persistence, manifested by the formation of persistent cells in the culture, which are a phenotypic variant of the isogenic population. The persistence of bacteria can occur spontaneously, regardless of exposure to antimicrobials or environmental reasons, such as lack of nutrients, oxidative stress or hypoxia. This small cell subpopulation is able to maintain viability even in the presence of antimicrobial agents at concentrations many times higher than therapeutic. The presence of persistent cells of pathogenic bacteria in the host organism reduces the effectiveness of antibiotic treatment, not due to the genotypic drug resistance of the microorganism, but due to the presence of phenotypic resistance of persister cells. The difference is fundamental, since cell-persisters are insensitive to any antibiotics and the development of fundamentally new antimicrobial strategies is necessary for their eradication. Persister cells are phenotypic variants of the maternal culture of bacteria that are present in all populations of microorganisms, and after the onset of favorable conditions, they are able to reclaim and form a new generation of vegetative bacteria. This review discusses modern concepts of the molecular genetic mechanisms of bacterial persistence with an emphasis on their clinical significance for the occurrence of persistent infections, and discusses innovative technologies for the eradication of resistant cell forms of microorganisms.</p>bacterial persistencepersistent infectionsmolecular mechanismspersister cellsresistanceeradicationmodern technologiesперсистенция бактерийперсистирующие инфекциимолекулярные механизмыклетки-персисторырезистентностьэрадикациясовременные технологии[Hobby G.L., Meyer K., Chaffee E. Observations on the mechanism of action of penicillin. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. NY. 1942; 50(2): 281-5. DOI: http://doi.org/10.3181/00379727-50-13773][Bigger J.W. 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