title: Adaptation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to the cystic fibrosis airway: an evolutionary perspective.
abstract: The airways of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) are nearly always infected with many different microorganisms. This environment offers warm, humid and nutrient-rich conditions, but is also stressful owing to frequent antibiotic therapy and the host immune response. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is commonly isolated from the airways of patients with CF, where it most often establishes chronic infections that usually persist for the rest of the lives of the patients. This bacterium is a major cause of mortality and morbidity and has therefore been studied intensely. Here, we discuss how P. aeruginosa evolves from a state of early, recurrent intermittent colonization of the airways of patients with CF to a chronic infection state, and how this process offers opportunities to study bacterial evolution in natural environments. We believe that such studies are valuable not only for our understanding of bacterial evolution but also for the future development of new therapeutic strategies to treat severe chronic infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Systems Biology, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark.
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Folkesson
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jelsbak
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Helle Krogh
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Johansen
authors.forename: Oana
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ciofu
authors.forename: Niels
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Høiby
authors.forename: Søren
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Molin
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000235:genetics*; D012137:Respiratory System / Q000382:microbiology*