Study of cefotaxime influence on morphological changes in the cells of staphylococcus aureus by atomic force microscopy

Abstract

With the use of high-resolution atomic force microscopy the effect of cefotaxime on morphological and mechanical properties of gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) cells was studied. The difference in the morphological features of bacterial populations was shown by the nature of the response to the antimicrobial agent. The common point was a decrease in diameter and an increase in the altitude characteristics of cells, which may be due to internal osmotic pressure on the cell wall, which reduced its rigidity under the action of cefotaxime