Interfakultäres Institut für Mikrobiologie und Infektionsmedizin

AG WTA (Room E8P19)

Research focus

Wall teichoic acids (WTA) are a major component of the Staphylococcus aureus cell wall. These surface-exposed glycopolymers mediate S. aureus adhesion to human cells, as well as the adsorption of bacteriophages. Our research investigates the molecular mechanisms governing these interactions, focusing on:

  • Defining how different chemical structures of WTA determine the binding specificity of bacteriophages that utilize WTA as a primary receptor (Krusche)
  • Characterizing how WTA modulates colonization and infection through interactions with host surface receptors (Slavetinsky)

Elucidating these interactions may improve the development of novel anti-staphylococcal strategies, such as targeted phage-based therapeutics or blocking host-pathogen adhesion.



Selected Publications

Krusche, J., Beck, C., Lehmann, E., Gerlach, D., Daiber, E., Mayer, C., Müller J., H. Onallah, S. Würstle, C. Wolz & Peschel, A. (2025). Characterization and host range prediction of Staphylococcus aureus phages through receptor-binding protein analysis. Cell Reports

Beck, C., Krusche, J., Notaro, A., Walter, A., Kränkel, L., Vollert, A., Stemmler, R., Wittmann, J., Schaller, M., Slavetinsky, C., Mayer, C., De Castro, C. & Peschel, A. (2024). Wall teichoic acid substitution with glucose governs phage susceptibility of Staphylococcus epidermidis. Mbio

Slavetinsky, J., Lehmann, E., Slavetinsky, C., Gritsch, L., van Dalen, R., Kretschmer, D., Bleul, L., Wolz, C., Weidenmaier, C. & Peschel, A. (2023). Wall teichoic acid mediates Staphylococcus aureus binding to endothelial cells via the scavenger receptor LOX-1. ACS Infectious Diseases

Du, X., Larsen, J., Li, M., Walter, A., Slavetinsky, C., Both, A., Sanchez Carballo, P.M., Stegger, M., Lehmann, E., Liu, Y., Slavetinsky, J., Duda, K.A., Krismer, B., Heilbronner, S., Weidenmaier, C., Mayer, C., Rhode, H., Winstel, V. & Peschel, A. (2021). Staphylococcus epidermidis clones express Staphylococcus aureus-type wall teichoic acid to shift from a commensal to pathogen lifestyle. Nature microbiology

Gerlach, D., Guo, Y., De Castro, C., Kim, S. H., Schlatterer, K., Xu, F. F., Pereira, C., Seeberger, P.H., Ali, S., Codée, J., Sirisarn, W., Schulte, B., Wolz, C., Larsen, J., Molinaro, A., Lee, B.L., Xia, G., Stehle, T.,  & Peschel, A. (2018). Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus alters cell wall glycosylation to evade immunity. Nature