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Review
. 2010 Dec;8(12):890-6.
doi: 10.1038/nrmicro2453. Epub 2010 Oct 25.

Exit from dormancy in microbial organisms

Jonathan Dworkin  1 , Ishita M Shah
Affiliations
Review

Exit from dormancy in microbial organisms

Jonathan Dworkin et al. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2010 Dec.

Abstract

Bacteria can exist in metabolically inactive states that allow them to survive conditions that are not conducive for growth. Such dormant cells may sense when conditions have improved and re-initiate growth, lest they be outcompeted by their neighbours. Growing bacteria turn over and release large quantities of their cell walls into the environment. Drawing from recent work on the germination of Bacillus subtilis spores, we propose that many microorganisms exit dormancy in response to cell wall muropeptides.

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References

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