Specialized phosphate transport is essential for nitric oxide resistance.

is a bacterial pathogen capable of causing a wide variety of disease in humans. is unique in its ability to resist the host immune response, including the antibacterial compound known as nitric oxide (NO·). We used an RNA-sequencing approach to better understand the impact of NO· on in different environments. We discovered that inorganic phosphate transport is induced by the presence of NO·. Phosphate is important for the generation of energy from glucose, a carbon source favored by . We show that the absence of these phosphate transporters causes lowered energy levels in . We find that these phosphate transporters are essential for to grow in the presence of NO· and to cause infection. Our work here contributes significantly to our understanding of NO· resistance and provides a new context in which phosphate transporters are essential.