ArticleNature microbiology2026
Skin androgens regulate Staphylococcus aureus pathogenicity via quorum sensing.
Article in Nature microbiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Intrinsic Dysregulation and Environmental Modifiers in Hidradenitis Suppurativa: Toward an Integrated Pathophysiologic Model.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Failed metabolic adaptation to stress contributes to epidermal cell adhesion defects in Darier disease.Science advances · 2026Article
- Atopic Dermatitis Beyond Cutaneous Inflammation: The Interplay Between Progesterone, Testosterone, Gut Microbiota, and Immune Dysregulation.Microorganisms · 2026Review
- Microbial quorum sensing signals, symbiosis, secrets and sabotage.Microbiology (Reading, England) · 2026Review
- Skin androgens affect virulence of Staphylococcus aureus.Nature microbiology · 2026Article
- Skin microbiome and cutaneous aging mechanisms and clinical implications.Frontiers in microbiology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
15 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Skin cells secrete testosterone, with greater amounts secreted at the skin surface of males compared with females. Males are also more susceptible to skin infections than females. Here we report that mice engineered with testosterone-deficient skin are resistant to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. Testosterone promoted the expression of S. aureus cytotoxic virulence factors by activating the accessory gene regulator (agr) quorum-sensing pathway in a concentration-dependent manner and independent of quorum-sensing-activating auto-inducing peptides. Mutational analysis revealed that a functional histidine kinase AgrC in S. aureus was required for testosterone to exert its effect, with in silico evidence indicating a direct interaction between testosterone and AgrC. An isomer of testosterone, enantiomer-testosterone, that blocked bacterial quorum sensing, inhibited S. aureus-induced cytotoxicity of human cells. These findings advance our understanding of how the skin regulates bacterial virulence and reveals a potential therapeutic strategy for the management of infections.
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Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.