Vesicles-mediated resistance to antibiotics in bacteria

During the past few decades, antibiotic-resistance of bacteria has assumed the proportion of a global crisis. The discovery of new antibiotics is not matching the rate of emergence of resistant strains thus narrowing the scope of chemotherapy. Notwithstanding the fact that emergence of resistance is facilitated by the use of antibiotics (Levy, 2002) exposure to antibiotics is not a pre-requisite for it. Antibiotic-resistance is detected even in bacteria occurring in places detached from the human civilization for millions of years (Bhullar et al., 2012). The various mechanisms responsible for antibiotic-resistance of bacteria were discussed in this journal some time back (Lin et al., 2015). Outer Membrane Vesicles (OMVs) are spherical bag-like structures (20–300 nm) released predominantly by gram-negative bacteria in the outer environment. They help the producer cells in communication with other cells, secretion, pathogenesis, acquisition of nutrients, and self-defense (Kulkarni and Jagannadham, 2014). Recent evidences indicate that they protect bacteria not only from phages and various environmental stress factors but also some antibiotics. The nature of vesicle-mediated antibiotic-resistance, known so far, is dealt with in this article.