{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"institution":[{"name":"bioRxiv"}],"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T14:14:16Z","timestamp":1785420856432,"version":"3.56.0"},"posted":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]},"group-title":"Microbiology","reference-count":54,"publisher":"openRxiv","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]],"date-time":"2026-03-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1773273600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"award":["1180500"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1180500"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01d35cw23","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000002","name":"National Institutes of Health","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["T32AI007417"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["T32AI007417"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000002","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000002","name":"National Institutes of Health","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["Intramural Research Program"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Intramural Research Program"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000002","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>SUMMARY<\/jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  During infection,\n                  <jats:italic>Staphylococcus aureus<\/jats:italic>\n                  forms dense multicellular structures, called staphylococcal abscess communities (SACs), that are encased in a capsule made of host fibrin to evade host immune defenses.\n                  <jats:italic>S. aureus<\/jats:italic>\n                  cells divide characteristically along successive orthogonal planes, but the contribution of this division geometry to infection is unclear. Here, we show that disrupting orthogonal cell division by deleting the cell division septum placement factor PcdA impairs SAC formation\n                  <jats:italic>in vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                  and in a three-dimensional\n                  <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                  model. Loss of PcdA leads to uneven surface distribution of adhesins containing the YSIRK signal sequence that directs their insertion into the division septum, thereby resulting in uneven interaction with fibrin fibers. Consequently, bacterial communities fail to establish a robust fibrin pseudocapsule and remain accessible to immune cells. We propose that orthogonal cell division coordinates cell cycle progression with extracellular matrix engagement, SAC architecture, and persistence within host tissues.\n                <\/jats:p>\n                <jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>HIGHLIGHTS<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:list list-type=\"bullet\">\n                    <jats:list-item>\n                      <jats:p>Orthogonal cell division promotes staphylococcal abscess community formation<\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:list-item>\n                    <jats:list-item>\n                      <jats:p>Loss of PcdA disrupts fibrin pseudocapsule assembly in 3D models<\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:list-item>\n                    <jats:list-item>\n                      <jats:p>Division geometry ensures uniform surface deployment of adhesins<\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:list-item>\n                    <jats:list-item>\n                      <jats:p>Cell division plane selection links bacterial cell cycle control to virulence<\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:list-item>\n                  <\/jats:list>\n                <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.64898\/2026.03.12.711374","type":"posted-content","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,13]],"date-time":"2026-03-13T06:00:15Z","timestamp":1773381615000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Orthogonal cell division organizes surface virulence factors to drive staphylococcal abscess community formation"],"prefix":"10.64898","author":[{"given":"F\u00e9lix","family":"Ramos-Le\u00f3n","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Valerie","family":"Altouma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peri","family":"Goldberg","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Amany M.","family":"Ibrahim","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Howard Taylor Ricketts Laboratory, University of Chicago, Lemont, IL, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Domenico","family":"D\u2019Atri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Federico","family":"Machinandiarena","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Vicenzo","family":"Verdi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dominique M.","family":"Missiakas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Howard Taylor Ricketts Laboratory, University of Chicago, Lemont, IL, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kimberly M.","family":"Davis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"W. 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