>Can someone attest that there are coagulase-negative S. aureus.<
The short answer is yes! Check out a paper by Vandenesch et al.:
Journal of Medical Microbiology. 40(5):344-9, 1994. Describing
"coagulase deficient strains" of Staph aureus. Naturally this may
complicate the clinical identification.
Also strains of S. aureus lacking coagulase have been made in the
laboratory, principally by Tim Foster and colleagues in Dublin.
Steve Projan
Wyeth-Ayerst Research
