Cell Heterogeneity in Staphylococcal Communities

Publication date: Available online 17 June 2019Source: Journal of Molecular BiologyAuthor(s): Juan Carlos García-Betancur, Daniel LopezAbstractThe human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus is a Gram-positive bacterium that causes difficult-to-treat infections. One of the reasons why S. aureus is such as successful pathogen is due to the cell-to-cell physiological variability that exists within microbial communities. Many laboratories around the world study the genetic mechanisms involved in S. aureus cell heterogeneity to better undertand infection mechanism of this bacterium. It was recently shown that the Agr quorum-sensing system, which antagonistically regulates biofilm-associated or acute bacteremia infections, is expressed in a subpopulation of specialized cells. In this review, we discuss the different genetic mechanism for bacterial cell differentiation and the physiological properties of the distinct cell types that are already described in S. aureus communities, as well as the role that these cell types play during an infection process.Graphical abstract
Source: Journal of Molecular Biology - Category: Molecular Biology Source Type: research