A Novel In Vitro Multiple-Stress Dormancy Model for Mycobacterium tuberculosis Generates a Lipid-Loaded, Drug-Tolerant, Dormant Pathogen

Abstract

The new in vitro multiple stress dormancy model efficiently generates Mtb cells meeting all criteria of dormancy, and this method is adaptable to high-throughput screening for drugs that can kill dormant Mtb. A critical link between storage-lipid accumulation and development of phenotypic drug-resistance in Mtb was established. Storage lipid biosynthetic genes may be appropriate targets for novel drugs that can kill latent Mtb.