Bacteriophage Transduction in Staphylococcus epidermidis

The genetic manipulation of Staphylococcus epidermidis for molecular experimentation has long been an area of difficulty. Many of the traditional laboratory techniques for strain construction are laborious and hampered by poor efficiency. The ability to move chromosomal genetic markers and plasmids using bacteriophage transduction has greatly increased the speed and ease of S. epidermidis studies. These molecular genetic advances have advanced the S. epidermidis research field beyond a select few genetically tractable strains and facilitated investigations of clinically relevant isolates.