In the UK, 20,000 cases of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia are reported each year, half of which are antibiotic resistant and approximately 4% are fatal, exemplifying a worldwide phenomenon of tremendous economic and human impact. Novel treatments and prophylaxis are urgently required to combat such a serious threat. A common goal in the postgenomic era is to identify new targets for drug intervention (using small molecules) and immunologicals. Several promising cellular targets are now being developed in the quest to control such a life-threatening pathogen.