Disease-causing microbes have evolved sophisticated strategies for invading the body, flourishing in often hostile environments and evading immune defenses. In a new study, Professor Cheryl Nickerson, her Arizona State University colleagues and collaborators at the University of Cincinnati and NASA Johnson Space Center delve into the physical forces guiding this behavior in a multidrug-resistant strain of salmonella, a bacterial pathogen. Their insights may accelerate the design of new therapies to address life-threatening bacterial infections, such as sepsis.