Figure 2.

Coagulase activity increases S aureus adhesion to collagen under shear stress. (A) Microparallel flow chamber perfusion over coated collagen with fluorescently labeled WT, vwb, and coa/vwb strains in plasma with or without preincubation (37°C for 15 minutes) at 1000 seconds⁻¹. The ability of bacteria to generate coagulase-mediated fibrin during the preincubation phase in plasma increases subsequent bacterial adhesion. Where indicated, dabigatran (500 nm) was added to the plasma (preincubation 37°C for 15 minutes) (n ≥ 5). (B) Perfusion over coated collagen with fluorescently labeled fibrinogen and WT, vwb, and coa/vwb strains in the presence of plasma and platelet-rich plasma (preincubation 37°C for 15 minutes) (n ≥ 4). All results are expressed as mean ± SEM. *P < .05, **P < .01, ***P < .001.