Cell wall-affecting antibiotics modulate natural transformation in SigH-expressing Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a major opportunistic human pathogen causing a broad spectrum of infections.1 This bacterium has an extraordinary ability to rapidly acquire resistance to antibiotics, and methicillin-resistant strains (MRSA), the most common cause of nosocomial infections, are now spreading into the community.2, 3 In S. aureus genome, many virulence and antibiotic resistance genes are found in mobile genetic elements,4, 5 indicating that horizontal gene transfer (HGT) must have a critical role in the evolution