Among multidrug-resistant bacteria, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is emerging as one of the most threatening pathogens. S. aureus exploits different mechanisms for its iron supply, but the preferred one is acquisition of organic iron through the expression of hemoglobin (Hb) receptors. One of these, IsdB, belonging to the Isd (Iron-Regulated Surface Determinant) system, was shown to be essential for bacterial growth and virulence. Therefore, interaction of IsdB with Hb represents a promising target for the rational design of a new class of antibacterial molecules. However, despite recent investigations, many structural and mechanistic details of complex formation and heme extraction process are still elusive. By combining site-directed mutagenesis, absorption spectroscopy, surface plasmon resonance and molecular dynamics simulations, we tackled most of the so far unanswered questions: (i) the exact complex stoichiometry, (ii) the microscopic kinetic rates of complex formation, (iii) the IsdB selectivity for binding to, and extracting heme from, α and β subunits of Hb, iv) the role of specific amino acid residues and structural regions in driving complex formation and heme transfer, and (v) the structural/dynamic effect played by the hemophore on Hb. The ability of bacterial pathogens to establish infections relies on the adaptation of bacterial metabolism to the environment found within the host, which is often severely nutrient-restricted and a site for competition with commensal microorganisms and other pathogens 1,2. A well-characterized mechanism of adaptation to the nutritional environment of the host is represented by the expression of redundant iron-acquisition systems, both in Gram + and Grambacteria, to provide iron supply to support invasion and proliferation 3. Iron is an essential nutrient for both the pathogen and the host, but also a toxic element due to its involvement in Fenton chemistry and Haber-Weiss reactions that generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) 4. For this reason, vertebrates have put in place strategies to maintain very low concentrations of free iron in body fluids (down to 10 −18-10 −24 M) 4,5 achieving two goals, the first being limiting toxicity and the second creating an iron-restricted environment for pathogens 6,7. In S. aureus, iron scavenging is achieved by at least three different mechanisms: i) acquisition of inorganic iron through production of siderophores, ii) expression of hemoglobin (Hb) receptors, and iii) acquisition of inorganic iron through transporters 4. Heme is the preferred iron source during the initial phase of infection 8