The nucleoid structure of an important human pathogen,
Staphylococcus aureus, was dissected by atomic force microscopy
(AFM). The nucleoids dispersed on a cover glass consisted of fibrous units
with two different widths of 40 and 80 nm, a feature shared with those of
Escherichia coli. On the other hand, cells exposed to an
oxidative stress exhibited clogged nucleoids. A knock-out of mrgA
(metallo regulated genes A) encoding a
staphylococcal homolog of the nucleoid compaction factor (E. coli
Dps) eliminated the compaction response to the oxidative stress and
reduced the susceptibilities to H2O2 and UV
irradiation. We also observed that the negative supercoiling of plasmids
is increased by the oxidative stress. A possible interrelation between the
helical density and the nucleoid compaction is discussed in relation to
the oxidative stress response.