FIG 5.
fakA mediates exogenous fatty acid bypass of triclosan in S. aureus. (A) WT S. aureus and an isogenic ΔfakA mutant were plated from overnight cultures separately as a lawn on TSA or TSA supplemented with a fatty acid (FA) mixture consisting of C14:0, C16:0, and C18:1. The mean diameter of the zone of inhibition from six independent experiments is shown. Error bars represent the standard error of the mean. Statistical significance was calculated by two-way ANOVA with a Tukey post hoc test for multiple comparisons; *, P = 0.0029; **, P < 0.0001. (B) The antimicrobial activities of triclosan against WT S. aureus and the ΔfakA mutant with and without 0.1% Tween 80 were compared. Cells were then suspended by pipetting, and the OD at 600 nm was measured. Results are presented as the percentage of the value for the untreated control cells. The mean from four independent experiments is shown. Error bars represent the standard error of the mean.