Staphylococcus aureus adopts revertible intracellular viable-but-non-culturable phenotypes in chronic osteocyte infections
Nicholas J. Gunn, Anja R. Zelmer, M. Amjad Hossain, Kate P. Whyte, Lucian Bogdan Solomon, Miguel Carda‐Diéguez, Álex Mira, Anna E. Sheppard, Stephen Peter Kidd, Dongqing Yang, Gerald J. Atkins
This study shows Staphylococcus aureus can enter a viable-but-non-culturable state within osteocytes, escape, and revert to active growth, explaining culture-negative but PCR-positive osteomyelitis.
bioRxiv · Dec 17, 2024 · PreprintMicrobiology