Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Reporter Genes02:11

Reporter Genes

Reporter genes are a type of protein-coding gene that are often tagged to a gene of interest. Once inside a target cell, reporter genes usually produce visually identifiable characteristics like fluorescence and luminescence when expressed along with the gene of interest. Thus, reporter genes “report” the presence or absence of genes of interest in an organism, determine the gene expression pattern, or track the physical location of a DNA segment or protein in the cell.
Commonly used reporter...
Labeling DNA Probes03:31

Labeling DNA Probes

DNA probes are fragments of DNA labeled with a reporter tag to enable their detection or purification. The resulting labeled DNA probes can then hybridize to target nucleic acid sequences through complementary base-pairing, and may be used to recover or identify these regions.
Radioisotopes, fluorophores, or small molecule binding partners like biotin or digoxigenin, are the most widely used reporter tags for labeling DNA probes. These labels can be attached to the probe DNA molecule via...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

The diabetic wound microenvironment drives emergence and maintenance of CovRS variants in group B <i>Streptococcus</i>.

Infection and immunity·2026
Same author

Skin androgens regulate Staphylococcus aureus pathogenicity via quorum sensing.

Nature microbiology·2026
Same author

A teichoic acid-like wall modification associated with immune suppression is socially regulated in <i>Streptococcus pyogenes</i>.

mBio·2026
Same author

Collagen binding adhesin restricts Staphylococcus aureus skin infection.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

Infection in VEXAS Patients Undergoing Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation.

Transplant infectious disease : an official journal of the Transplantation Society·2026
Same author

A teichoic acid-like wall modification associated with immune suppression is socially regulated in <i>Streptococcus pyogenes</i>.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Time-Lapse Epifluorescence Microscopy Imaging of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus Heterogeneous Phenotypes
07:44

Time-Lapse Epifluorescence Microscopy Imaging of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus Heterogeneous Phenotypes

Published on: February 14, 2025

Fluorescent reporters for Staphylococcus aureus.

Cheryl L Malone1, Blaise R Boles, Katherine J Lauderdale

  • 1Department of Microbiology, Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.

Journal of Microbiological Methods
|March 7, 2009
PubMed
Summary

Researchers developed new fluorescent reporter plasmids for Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) studies. These tools enable robust cell labeling for monitoring gene expression, pathogenesis, and biofilm formation.

More Related Videos

A Fluorescence-based Method to Study Bacterial Gene Regulation in Infected Tissues
07:10

A Fluorescence-based Method to Study Bacterial Gene Regulation in Infected Tissues

Published on: February 19, 2019

Studying Interactions of Staphylococcus aureus with Neutrophils by Flow Cytometry and Time Lapse Microscopy
10:40

Studying Interactions of Staphylococcus aureus with Neutrophils by Flow Cytometry and Time Lapse Microscopy

Published on: July 17, 2013

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Time-Lapse Epifluorescence Microscopy Imaging of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus Heterogeneous Phenotypes
07:44

Time-Lapse Epifluorescence Microscopy Imaging of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus Heterogeneous Phenotypes

Published on: February 14, 2025

A Fluorescence-based Method to Study Bacterial Gene Regulation in Infected Tissues
07:10

A Fluorescence-based Method to Study Bacterial Gene Regulation in Infected Tissues

Published on: February 19, 2019

Studying Interactions of Staphylococcus aureus with Neutrophils by Flow Cytometry and Time Lapse Microscopy
10:40

Studying Interactions of Staphylococcus aureus with Neutrophils by Flow Cytometry and Time Lapse Microscopy

Published on: July 17, 2013

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Biotechnology

Background:

  • Staphylococcus aureus is a significant pathogen in both community and healthcare settings.
  • Effective reporter tools are crucial for studying S. aureus physiology and pathogenesis.
  • Fluorescent proteins offer convenient methods for monitoring gene expression, host interactions, and biofilm development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a versatile suite of fluorescent reporter plasmids for labeling Staphylococcus aureus cells.
  • To enable constitutive or inducible expression of fluorescent reporters.
  • To characterize reporter expression under various promoters and ribosome binding sites.

Main Methods:

  • Construction of plasmids encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP), yellow fluorescent protein (YFP), and red fluorescent protein (mCherry).
  • Placement of reporters under control of characterized promoters, including agr quorum-sensing and sigma factor B promoters.
  • Characterization of reporter expression in wildtype and mutant S. aureus strains.
  • Assessment of reporter robustness using fluorescence microscopy and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS).
  • Evaluation of constitutive YFP reporter for biofilm labeling in a flow-cell apparatus.

Main Results:

  • Developed a suite of fluorescent reporter plasmids (GFP, YFP, mCherry) for S. aureus.
  • Reporter expression is dependent on promoter choice and ribosome binding site (RBS) sequence, with the superoxide dismutase RBS showing strongest expression.
  • Demonstrated successful cell imaging and population separation using FACS for simultaneous monitoring of multiple S. aureus properties.
  • Confirmed stable and robust labeling of biofilm growth using a constitutive YFP reporter.

Conclusions:

  • The developed fluorescent reporter plasmids provide a valuable toolbox for S. aureus research.
  • These plasmids facilitate diverse experimental applications, including gene expression analysis, pathogenesis studies, and biofilm monitoring.
  • The robust labeling capabilities enhance the study of S. aureus in various biological contexts.