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Hidden DNA copying may give bacteria a faster route to antibiotic resistance
The dangers of antibiotic overuse have become increasingly clear in recent decades. Excessive use accelerates the evolution of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, raising the alarming prospect of infections that no longer respond to existing drugs and pose a serious threat to public health.
Against this backdrop, Dr. Idan Yelin and Prof. Roy Kishony of Technion's Faculty of Biology have published a study in Nature Microbiology revealing a previously unknown rapid pathway that bacteria use to develop antibiotic resistance.
The newly identified mechanism is based on an "inflation" in the number of copies of specific genes that provide bacteria with a survival advantage, including resistance to antibiotics. The discovery was made using AmpliFinder, a new computational tool developed by the researchers, which they used to analyze more than 10,000 laboratory-evolved bacterial samples.
A hidden form of amplification
The mechanism is based on gene amplification, a well-known evolutionary process previously linked to antibiotic resistance. The study also reveals a dramatic new form of noncanonical gene amplification: Genes are duplicated through a single DNA segment that connects distant regions of the genome, making the process extremely difficult to detect.
"When we began our research, we expected to identify mainly the classical amplification mechanism described in textbooks, a repetitive structure of a gene flanked by two copies of the same mobile genetic element. We assumed that the noncanonical structures, in which the mobile genetic elements are missing at either one or both ends of the repetitive structure, would be little more than a footnote. Instead, that footnote turned out to be the main story," said Yelin. "We discovered that these noncanonical amplifications are extremely common in bacteria and are more efficient at gene amplification, suggesting that they provide bacteria with a faster route to antibiotic resistance."
Resistance can build far faster
The researchers found that this mechanism generates rapid, targeted DNA amplifications, producing dozens of copies of resistance-conferring genes within the bacterium. As a result, bacteria can respond to antibiotic treatment far more quickly and effectively than previously known amplification mechanisms can explain.
The study was conducted on two bacterial species, Escherichia coli and Acinetobacter baumannii. Using the antibiotic chloramphenicol, the researchers demonstrated that amplification of a DNA segment containing the mdfA gene not only increased the bacteria's existing resistance but also enabled them to adapt to progressively higher concentrations of the antibiotic. This finding indicates that the mechanism drives accelerated evolution, significantly enhancing bacterial survival. The researchers also found that this mechanism is far more common than previously recognized.
The team believes that identifying this mechanism could pave the way for new therapies designed to disrupt it, limiting bacteria's ability to develop antibiotic resistance and thereby enhancing the effectiveness of antibiotic treatment.
Publication details
Idan Yelin et al, Non-canonical gene amplifications facilitate adaptive evolution in bacteria, Nature Microbiology (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41564-026-02415-2
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Citation: Hidden DNA copying may give bacteria a faster route to antibiotic resistance (2026, July 27) retrieved 27 July 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2026-07-hidden-dna-bacteria-faster-route.html
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