Aina Ananda, Ph.D., lecturer in the Department of Biology, collaborated with faculty from the University of Houston to publish “Unraveling CRP/cAMP-mediated Metabolic Regulation in Escherichia coli Persister Cells” (eLife, 2025). The research aims to improve methods of fighting infections by demonstrating that some bacteria survive antibiotics not by shutting down, but by increasing their energy production.
The authors focused their study on “persister” cells, which are rare bacterial cells that survive antibiotics without genetic resistance. While these cells were previously believed to be mostly dormant, this new research suggests a high level of activity at the metabolic level.
Using E. coli as a model, the researchers found that persister cells rely on a regulatory system called Crp/cAMP. This system shifts the cells’ metabolism to focus on producing energy through oxidative phosphorylation—a process that efficiently generates ATP, the cell’s energy source.
When researchers disrupted this system, the bacteria became more vulnerable to antibiotics. This suggests that targeting energy metabolism could help eliminate persister cells, which may lead to making antibiotics more effective against chronic infections.
According to the authors, the study provides much-needed clarification regarding the role of energy metabolism in antibiotic tolerance and highlights the importance of using a multipronged approach at the genomic level to obtain a broader picture of the metabolic state of persister cells.
Ananda conducted this research alongside Han G. Ngo, Sayed Golam Mohiuddin, and Mehmet Orman, faculty in the Department of Chemical Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Houston.