"Discovery of Unconventional Pathway for Antibiotic Resistance"
Researchers at the Marine Biological Laboratory have discovered a novel genetic arrangement in the common gut bacterium Bacteroides fragilis that may help it protect itself from tetracycline, a widely used antibiotic. This finding sheds light on previously unseen genetic arrangements that confer antibiotic resistance and may aid in developing new ways to limit the spread of antibiotic resistance genes. The study, published in the journal mBio, reveals the presence of mobile genetic elements called transposons, which play a key role in horizontal gene transfer and the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.