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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 6, 2026

Development and Assessment of Intracellular Infection Models for Staphylococcus aureus

Development and Assessment of Intracellular Infection Models for Staphylococcus aureus

Published on: January 17, 2025

Acapsular clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates lack agr function.

J Fischer¹, J C Lee, G Peters

¹Institute of Medical Microbiology, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany; The Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.

Clinical Microbiology and Infection : the Official Publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

|November 15, 2013

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Staphylococcus aureus strains with a non-functional accessory gene regulator (agr) system were less likely to produce capsular polysaccharide (CP). This suggests agr influences CP expression in clinical isolates.

Keywords:

Staphylococcus aureus agr capsule clinical isolates virulence

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Area of Science:

Microbiology
Infectious Diseases
Molecular Biology

Background:

Staphylococcus aureus is a significant cause of bacterial infections.
Capsular polysaccharide (CP) aids S. aureus in evading host defenses.
The accessory gene regulator (agr) system controls virulence factors in S. aureus.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the relationship between capsular polysaccharide (CP) expression and accessory gene regulator (agr) activity in clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates.
To determine if agr functionality impacts CP production in patient-derived S. aureus strains.

Main Methods:

Assessed CP production and agr expression in 195 clinical S. aureus isolates.
Utilized Northern blot analysis to evaluate agr locus functionality and CP expression.

Main Results:

A notable association was found between agr functionality and CP production.
S. aureus strains with a non-functional agr locus were significantly more likely to be CP-negative.
Conversely, strains with a functional agr locus showed a higher propensity for CP production.

Conclusions:

The accessory gene regulator (agr) system appears to play a role in regulating capsular polysaccharide (CP) expression in clinical S. aureus isolates.
Understanding this interaction may offer new insights into S. aureus pathogenesis and treatment strategies.