Growth characteristics of clinical isolates in different stress conditions.

Mean exponential growth rate (Td) is expressed in minutes and was determined based on growth curves generated in a Bioscreen C Lab System. Lag time is expressed as minutes. ODf indicates the average final OD at the indicated time in hours. ODm indicates the average maximum yield (highest OD reached during growth). Growth curve data is based on duplicate growth curves of two separate cultures (n = 4). Bold values represent the highest and lowest Td under each condition. Statistical differences compared to reference strain UA159 are indicated;* = P≤0.001,€ = P≤0.01, and† = P≤0.05.