Throughout their evolutionary history, bacteria have faced diverse threats from other microorganisms, including competing bacteria, bacteriophages and predators. In response to these threats, they have evolved sophisticated defence mechanisms that today also protect bacteria against antibiotics and other therapies. In this Review, we explore the protective strategies of bacteria, including the mechanisms, evolution and clinical implications of these ancient defences. We also review the countermeasures that attackers have evolved to overcome bacterial defences. We argue that understanding how bacteria defend themselves in nature is important for the development of new therapies and for minimizing resistance evolution.

在整个进化史中，细菌面临着来自其他微生物的多种威胁，包括竞争细菌、噬菌体和捕食者。为了应对这些威胁，它们进化出了复杂的防御机制，如今也可以保护细菌免受抗生素和其他疗法的侵害。在这篇综述中，我们探讨了细菌的保护策略，包括这些古老防御的机制、进化和临床意义。我们还回顾了攻击者为克服细菌防御而进化出的对策。我们认为，了解细菌在自然界中如何保护自己对于开发新疗法和最大限度地减少耐药性进化非常重要。