Stress-triggered signaling affecting survival or suicide of Streptococcus pneumoniae

These results suggest that both TCSs and F0F1-ATPase control a stress response and decide between a survival or a suicide mechanism by independent pathways, either in vitro or in pneumocyte cultures. This biological model contributes to the current knowledge about bacterial response under stress conditions in host tissues, where pathogens need to survive in order to establish infections.