2.5 The phenyl acetic catabolic pathway
In ATCC 19606 strain under a ceftazidime (50 × MIC) antibiotic shock,
the aromatic compound degradation (PAA) genes were overexpressed in
persister cells (Table 1) [113]. The authors suggest that the
degradation of the aromatic ring of antibiotics was used by A.
baumannii under conditions of nutrient limitation. In ATCC 17978, under
antibiotic subinhibitory concentrations, the PAA operon was shown to be
overexpressed while Csu pilus expression and biofilm formation were
repressed [114]. This suggests that this pathway may participate to
the regulatory network used in response to antibiotic treatment.