DNA Damage Repair and Bacterial Pathogens

All species require DNA repair pathways to maintain the integrity of their genomes. Bacterial damage repair mechanisms have broader roles encompassing responses to stress, long-term colonization, as well as virulence. The SOS response regulates DNA repair and damage tolerance genes in many bacterial species. This article highlights the bacterial SOS response and its significance in bacterial adaptation and pathogenesis, as well as DNA damage responses provoked by bacterial pathogens in the mammalian host.