101
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Binding of epsilon-toxin from Clostridium perfringens in the nervous system. Vet Microbiol 2008; 131:14-25. [PMID: 18406080 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2008.02.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2008] [Revised: 02/18/2008] [Accepted: 02/20/2008] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Epsilon-toxin (epsilon-toxin), produced by Clostridium perfringens type D, is the main agent responsible for enterotoxaemia in livestock. Neurological disorders are a characteristic of the onset of toxin poisoning. Epsilon-Toxin accumulates specifically in the central nervous system, where it produces a glutamatergic-mediated excitotoxic effect. However, no detailed study of putative binding structures in the nervous tissue has been carried out to date. Here we attempt to identify specific acceptor moieties and cell targets for epsilon-toxin, not only in the mouse nervous system but also in the brains of sheep and cattle. An epsilon-toxin-GFP fusion protein was produced and used to incubate brain sections, which were then analyzed by confocal microscopy. The results clearly show specific binding of epsilon-toxin to myelin structures. epsilon-Prototoxin-GFP and epsilon-toxin-GFP, the inactive and active forms of the toxin, respectively, showed identical results. By means of pronase E treatment, we found that the binding was mainly associated to a protein component of the myelin. Myelinated peripheral nerve fibres were also stained by epsilon-toxin. Moreover, the binding to myelin was not only restricted to rodents, but was also found in humans, sheep and cattle. Curiously, in the brains of both sheep and cattle, the toxin strongly stained the vascular endothelium, a result that may explain the differences in potency and effect between species. Although the binding of epsilon-toxin to myelin does not directly explain its neurotoxic effect, this feature opens up a new line of enquiry into its mechanism of toxicity and establishes the usefulness of this toxin for the study of the mammalian nervous system.
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102
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Camacho N, Espinoza C, Rodríguez C, Rodríguez E. Isolates of Clostridium perfringens recovered from Costa Rican patients with antibiotic-associated diarrhoea are mostly enterotoxin-negative and susceptible to first-choice antimicrobials. J Med Microbiol 2008; 57:343-347. [DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.47505-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
To assess the prevalence of enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens among adults suffering from antibiotic-associated diarrhoea in a Costa Rican hospital, faecal samples were analysed from 104 patients by a cultivation approach. The 29 strains obtained, which accounted for an isolation frequency of 28 %, were genotyped and investigated with regard to their in vitro susceptibility to penicillin, imipenem, cefotaxime, chloramphenicol and metronidazole using an agar-dilution method. A multiplex PCR for detection of the toxins α, β and ϵ predictably classified all faecal isolates as biotype A. An agglutination assay revealed that only one isolate synthesized detectable amounts of enterotoxin (detection rate 3 %). This result was confirmed by a PCR targeting the cpe gene. The spores of the only CPE+ isolate did not germinate after incubation for 30 min at temperatures above 80 °C. Most isolates were susceptible to first-choice antimicrobials. However, unusual MICs for penicillin (16 μg ml−1) and metronidazole (512 μg ml−1) were detected in one and three isolates, respectively. The low incidence of enterotoxigenic strains suggests that C. perfringens was not a major primary cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea in this hospital during the sampling period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natassia Camacho
- Research Laboratory in Anaerobic Bacteriology (LIBA), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Carlos Espinoza
- Research Laboratory in Anaerobic Bacteriology (LIBA), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
| | - César Rodríguez
- Research Center for Tropical Diseases (CIET), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
- Research Laboratory in Anaerobic Bacteriology (LIBA), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Evelyn Rodríguez
- Research Center for Tropical Diseases (CIET), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
- Research Laboratory in Anaerobic Bacteriology (LIBA), Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, San Pedro de Montes de Oca 2060, San José, Costa Rica
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103
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Van Itallie CM, Betts L, Smedley JG, McClane BA, Anderson JM. Structure of the Claudin-binding Domain of Clostridium perfringens Enterotoxin. J Biol Chem 2008; 283:268-274. [DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m708066200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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104
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Jovov B, Van Itallie CM, Shaheen NJ, Carson JL, Gambling TM, Anderson JM, Orlando RC. Claudin-18: a dominant tight junction protein in Barrett's esophagus and likely contributor to its acid resistance. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2007; 293:G1106-13. [PMID: 17932229 DOI: 10.1152/ajpgi.00158.2007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 102] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Barrett's esophagus (BE) is a specialized columnar epithelium (SCE) that develops as replacement for damaged squamous epithelium (SqE) in subjects with reflux disease, and as such it is apparently more acid resistant than SqE. How SCE resists acid injury is poorly understood; one means may involve altered tight junctions (TJs) since the TJ in SqE is an early target of attack and damage by acid in reflux disease. To assess this possibility, quantitative RT-PCR for 21 claudins was performed on endoscopic biopsies on SCE of BE and from healthy SqE from subjects without esophageal disease. In SCE, Cldn-18 was the most highly expressed at the mRNA level and this finding is paralleled by marked elevation in protein expression on immunoblots. In contrast in SqE, Cldn-18 was minimally expressed at the mRNA level and undetectable at the protein level. Immunofluorescence studies showed membrane localization of Cldn-18 and colocalization with the tight junction protein, zonula occludens-1. When Cldn-18 was overexpressed in MDCK II cells and mounted as monolayers in Ussing chambers, it raised electrical resistance and, as shown by lower dilution potentials to a NaCl gradient and lower diffusion potentials to acidic gradients, selectively reduced paracellular permeability to both Na(+) and H(+) compared with parental MDCK cells. We conclude that Cldn-18 is the dominant claudin in the TJ of SCE and propose that the change from a Cldn-18-deficient TJ in SqE to a Cldn-18-rich TJ in SCE contributes to the greater acid resistance of BE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Biljana Jovov
- Dept. of Medicine, Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
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105
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Clostridium perfringens type A strains carrying a plasmid-borne enterotoxin gene (genotype IS1151-cpe or IS1470-like-cpe) as a common cause of food poisoning. J Clin Microbiol 2007; 46:371-3. [PMID: 18003798 DOI: 10.1128/jcm.01650-07] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The prevalences of various genotypes of enterotoxin gene-carrying (cpe-positive) Clostridium perfringens type A in 24 different food poisoning outbreaks were 75% (chromosomal IS1470-cpe), 21% (plasmid-borne IS1470-like-cpe), and 4% (plasmid-borne IS1151-cpe). These results show that C. perfringens type A carrying the plasmid-borne cpe is a common cause of food poisoning.
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106
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Hughes ML, Poon R, Adams V, Sayeed S, Saputo J, Uzal FA, McClane BA, Rood JI. Epsilon-toxin plasmids of Clostridium perfringens type D are conjugative. J Bacteriol 2007; 189:7531-8. [PMID: 17720791 PMCID: PMC2168747 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00767-07] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Isolates of Clostridium perfringens type D produce the potent epsilon-toxin (a CDC/U.S. Department of Agriculture overlap class B select agent) and are responsible for several economically significant enterotoxemias of domestic livestock. It is well established that the epsilon-toxin structural gene, etx, occurs on large plasmids. We show here that at least two of these plasmids are conjugative. The etx gene on these plasmids was insertionally inactivated using a chloramphenicol resistance cassette to phenotypically tag the plasmid. High-frequency conjugative transfer of the tagged plasmids into the C. perfringens type A strain JIR325 was demonstrated, and the resultant transconjugants were shown to act as donors in subsequent mating experiments. We also demonstrated the transfer of "unmarked" native epsilon-toxin plasmids into strain JIR325 by exploiting the high transfer frequency. The transconjugants isolated in these experiments expressed functional epsilon-toxin since their supernatants had cytopathic effects on MDCK cells and were toxic in mice. Using the widely accepted multiplex PCR approach for toxin genotyping, these type A-derived transconjugants were genotypically type D. These findings have significant implications for the C. perfringens typing system since it is based on the toxin profile of each strain. Our study demonstrated the fluid nature of the toxinotypes and their dependence upon the presence or absence of toxin plasmids, some of which have for the first time been shown to be conjugative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meredith L Hughes
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Structural and Functional Microbial Genomics, Department of Microbiology, Monash University, Victoria 3800, Australia
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107
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Robertson SL, Smedley JG, Singh U, Chakrabarti G, Van Itallie CM, Anderson JM, McClane BA. Compositional and stoichiometric analysis of Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin complexes in Caco-2 cells and claudin 4 fibroblast transfectants. Cell Microbiol 2007; 9:2734-55. [PMID: 17587331 DOI: 10.1111/j.1462-5822.2007.00994.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) binds to host cell receptors, forming a small complex precursor for two large complexes reportedly having molecular masses of approximately 155 or approximately 200 kDa. Formation of the approximately 155 kDa complex causes a Ca(2+) influx that leads to apoptosis or oncosis. CPE complex composition is currently poorly understood, although occludin was identified in the approximately 200 kDa complex. The current study used heteromer gel shift analysis to show both CPE large complexes contain six CPE molecules. Ferguson plots and size exclusion chromatography re-sized the approximately 155 and approximately 200 kDa complexes as approximately 425-500 kDa and approximately 550-660 kDa respectively. Co-immunoprecipitation and electroelution studies demonstrated both CPE-binding and non-CPE-binding claudins are associated with all three CPE complexes in Caco-2 cells and with small complex and approximately 425-500 kDa complex of claudin 4 transfectants. Fibroblast transfectants expressing claudin 4 or C-terminal truncated claudin 4 were CPE-sensitive and formed the approximately 425 kDa complex, indicating claudin-induced cell signalling is not required for CPE action and that expression of a single receptor claudin suffices for approximately 425-500 kDa CPE complex formation. These results identify CPE as a unique toxin that combines with tight junction proteins to form high-molecular-mass hexameric pores and alter membrane permeability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan L Robertson
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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108
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Chen Y, Caruso L, McClane B, Fisher D, Gupta P. Disruption of a toxin gene by introduction of a foreign gene into the chromosome of Clostridium perfringens using targetron-induced mutagenesis. Plasmid 2007; 58:182-9. [PMID: 17553563 PMCID: PMC2034400 DOI: 10.1016/j.plasmid.2007.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2007] [Revised: 04/18/2007] [Accepted: 04/23/2007] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) has been developed as a potential oral delivery vehicle to deliver antigens or therapeutic compounds to Gut-Associated Lymphoid Tissue (GALT). However, this recombinant C. perfringens carries a plasmid-encoded expression system, which raises several safety concerns regarding possible horizontal plasmid transfer and spread of plasmid-associated antibiotic resistant genes. Furthermore, this bacterium produces the extracellular theta toxin, which poses a potential safety issue for general administration. Using a Clostridium-specific-targetron donor plasmid, we inserted the Simian Immunodefiency Virus (SIV) p27 gene into the theta toxin gene (pfoA) on the C. perfringens chromosome, which simultaneously inactivated the theta gene and introduced SIV p27 gene onto the bacterial chromosome. Such mutant C. perfringens without an input plasmid or antibiotic resistant gene stably produced a large amount of SIV p27 protein during sporulation and did not produce theta toxin. Upon oral feeding of the mutant bacteria to mice, intact p27 protein was detected in the lower GI tract. The re-engineered C. perfringens provides a biosafe efficient oral vehicle to deliver antigen to the gastrointestinal tract.
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MESH Headings
- Administration, Oral
- Animals
- Bacterial Toxins/genetics
- Blotting, Western
- Chromosomes, Bacterial/genetics
- Clostridium perfringens/genetics
- DNA, Bacterial/chemistry
- DNA, Bacterial/genetics
- Female
- Gene Deletion
- Gene Products, gag/analysis
- Gene Products, gag/genetics
- Genetic Engineering
- Hemolysin Proteins/genetics
- Intestine, Small/surgery
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred BALB C
- Mutagenesis, Insertional
- Plasmids
- Recombinant Proteins/administration & dosage
- Recombinant Proteins/immunology
- Sequence Analysis, DNA
- Time Factors
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Chen
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, 430 Parran Hall, GSPH, 130 DeSoto Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.
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109
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Lebrun M, Filée P, Galleni M, Mainil JG, Linden A, Taminiau B. Purification of the recombinant beta2 toxin (CPB2) from an enterotoxaemic bovine Clostridium perfringens strain and production of a specific immune serum. Protein Expr Purif 2007; 55:119-31. [PMID: 17562369 DOI: 10.1016/j.pep.2007.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2007] [Revised: 04/20/2007] [Accepted: 04/21/2007] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Overgrowth of Clostridium perfringens clones with production of one or more of its toxin(s) results in diverse digestive and systemic pathologies in human and animals, such as cattle enterotoxaemia. The so-called beta2 toxin (CPB2) is the most recently described major toxin produced by C. perfringens. In this study, the cpb2 ORF (cpb2FM) from a cattle C. perfringens-associated enterotoxaemia was cloned and sequenced. The cpb2FM and its deduced nucleotide sequence clearly corresponded to the cpb2 allele considered as "consensus" and not to "atypical" allele, despite its "non-porcine" origin. Expression assays of the recombinant toxin CPB2FM were performed in Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis with the expression vector pBLTS72, and by genomic integration by double recombination in B. subtilis. Highest level of production was obtained with the expression vector in B. subtilis 168 strain. The recombinant CPB2FM protein was purified and a specific rabbit polyclonal antiserum was produced. Polyclonal antibodies could detect CPB2 production in supernatants of C. perfringens from enterotoxaemic cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Lebrun
- Department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases-Bacteriology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège 4000, Belgium.
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110
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Sayeed S, Li J, McClane BA. Virulence plasmid diversity in Clostridium perfringens type D isolates. Infect Immun 2007; 75:2391-8. [PMID: 17339362 PMCID: PMC1865775 DOI: 10.1128/iai.02014-06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens type D isolates are important in biodefense and also cause natural enterotoxemias in sheep, goats, and occasionally cattle. In these isolates, the gene (etx) encoding epsilon-toxin is thought to reside on poorly characterized large plasmids. Type D isolates sometimes also produce other potentially plasmid-encoded toxins, including C. perfringens enterotoxin and beta2 toxin, encoded by the cpe and cbp2 genes, respectively. In the current study we demonstrated that the etx, cpe, and cpb2 genes are carried on plasmids in type D isolates and characterized the toxin-encoding plasmids to obtain insight into their genetic organization, potential transferability, and diversity. Southern blotting of pulsed-field gels showed that the etx gene of type D isolates can be present on at least five different plasmids, whose sizes range from 48 to 110 kb. The etx plasmids also typically carried IS1151 and tcp open reading frames (ORFs) known to mediate conjugative transfer of C. perfringens plasmid pCW3. PCR studies revealed that other than their tcp ORFs, etx plasmids of type D isolates do not carry substantial portions of the conserved or variable regions in the cpe plasmids of type A isolates. Southern blotting also demonstrated that in type D isolates the cpe and cpb2 genes are sometimes present on the etx plasmid. Collectively, these findings confirmed that the virulence of type D isolates is heavily plasmid dependent and indicated that (i) a single type D isolate can carry multiple virulence plasmids, (ii) a single type D virulence plasmid can carry up to three different toxin genes, and (iii) many etx plasmids should be capable of conjugative transfer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sameera Sayeed
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA
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111
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Heikinheimo A, Lindström M, Granum PE, Korkeala H. Humans as reservoir for enterotoxin gene--carrying Clostridium perfringens type A. Emerg Infect Dis 2007; 12:1724-9. [PMID: 17283623 PMCID: PMC3372343 DOI: 10.3201/eid1211.060478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans may play a role in the transmission of gastrointestinal diseases caused by C. perfringens. We found a prevalence of 18% for enterotoxin gene–carrying (cpe+) Clostridium perfringens in the feces of healthy food handlers by PCR and isolated the organism from 11 of 23 PCR-positive persons by using hydrophobic grid membrane filter-colony hybridization. Several different cpe genotypes were recovered. The prevalence was 3.7% for plasmidial IS1151-cpe, 2.9% for plasmidial IS1470-like-cpe, 0.7% for chromosomal IS1470-cpe, and 1.5% for unknown cpe genotype. Lateral spread of cpe between C. perfringens strains was evident because strains from the same person carried IS1470-like cpe but shared no genetic relatedness according to pulsed-field gel electrophoresis analysis. Our findings suggest that healthy humans serve as a rich reservoir for cpe+ C. perfringens type A and may play a role in the etiology of gastrointestinal diseases caused by this organism. The results also indicate that humans should be considered a risk factor for spread of C. perfringens type A food poisoning and that they are a possible source of contamination for C. perfringens type A food poisoning.
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112
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Fujita S, Kageyama T. Polymerase chain reaction detection of Clostridium perfringens in feces from captive and wild chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes. J Med Primatol 2007; 36:25-32. [PMID: 17359463 DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0684.2006.00191.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND For veterinary management of non-human primates in captivity, and conservation of wild-living primates, management of their health risks is necessary. Incidences of pathogenic bacteria in the fecal specimens are considered as one of the useful indicators for non-invasive health monitoring. METHODS We carried out the detection of Clostridium perfringens in feces from captive and wild chimpanzees by the rapid polymerase chain reaction method. RESULTS The bacterium was detected in most fecal specimens (80%) in captive chimpanzees. Contrarily, the detection rate in the wild chimpanzees was low, with 23% (n = 12) of 53 fecal samples from the Bossou group, Guinea, and 1.2% (1/81) in the Mahale group, Tanzania. CONCLUSIONS These results show that the intestinal microflora differs between Pan populations under various living conditions, being influenced by their diet and environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiho Fujita
- Laboratory of Research Resource, Tsukuba Primate Research Center, National Institute of Biomedical Innovation, Tsukuba, Japan.
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113
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Lebrun M, Filée P, Mousset B, Desmecht D, Galleni M, Mainil JG, Linden A. The expression of Clostridium perfringens consensus beta2 toxin is associated with bovine enterotoxaemia syndrome. Vet Microbiol 2007; 120:151-7. [PMID: 17126502 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2006.10.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2006] [Revised: 10/12/2006] [Accepted: 10/17/2006] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens has been implicated in a broad array of enteric infections including the fatal haemorrhagic enteritis/enterotoxaemia syndrome in cattle. The beta2 toxin (CPB2), encoded by cpb2, is suspected to be implicated in this syndrome. However, among C. perfringens isolates from cattle suspected of clostridial disease, an atypical allele was recently found to predominate at the cpb2 locus and atypical corresponding CPB2 proteins were shown to be poorly expressed, thus arguing against a biologically significant role of the beta2 toxin in clostridial diseases in cattle. This study compared genotype and phenotype of the beta2 toxin between C. perfringens isolates from a group of healthy calves (n=14, 87 isolates) and from a group of enterotoxaemic calves (n=8, 41 isolates). PCR results revealed the exclusive presence of the typical "consensus"cpb2 in the enterotoxaemic group. Western blot analysis demonstrated that the typical variant of CPB2 was often expressed in isolates from enterotoxaemic calves (43.9%) and infrequently in isolates from healthy cattle (6.9%). These data suggest that the typical variant of the CPB2 toxin may play a role in the pathogenesis of cattle enterotoxaemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Lebrun
- Department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases (Bacteriology), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège 4000, Belgium.
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114
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Bang JH, Kim HB. Diagnosis and Clinical Features of Food Poisoning. JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION 2007. [DOI: 10.5124/jkma.2007.50.7.592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Ji Hwan Bang
- Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center, Korea.
| | - Hong Bin Kim
- Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center, Korea.
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115
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Fisher DJ, Fernandez-Miyakawa ME, Sayeed S, Poon R, Adams V, Rood JI, Uzal FA, McClane BA. Dissecting the contributions of Clostridium perfringens type C toxins to lethality in the mouse intravenous injection model. Infect Immun 2006; 74:5200-10. [PMID: 16926413 PMCID: PMC1594841 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00534-06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The gram-positive anaerobe Clostridium perfringens produces a large arsenal of toxins that are responsible for histotoxic and enteric infections, including enterotoxemias, in humans and domestic animals. C. perfringens type C isolates, which cause rapidly fatal diseases in domestic animals and enteritis necroticans in humans, contain the genes for alpha toxin (plc), perfringolysin O (pfoA), beta toxin (cpb), and sometimes beta2 toxin (cpb2) and/or enterotoxin (cpe). Due to the economic impact of type C-induced diseases, domestic animals are commonly vaccinated with crude type C toxoid (prepared from inactivated culture supernatants) or bacterin/toxoid vaccines, and it is not clear which toxin(s) present in these vaccines actually elicits the protective immune response. To improve type C vaccines, it would be helpful to assess the contribution of each toxin present in type C supernatants to lethality. To address this issue, we surveyed a large collection of type C isolates to determine their toxin-producing abilities. When late-log-phase vegetative culture supernatants were analyzed by quantitative Western blotting or activity assays, most type C isolates produced at least three lethal toxins, alpha toxin, beta toxin, and perfringolysin O, and several isolates also produced beta2 toxin. In the mouse intravenous injection model, beta toxin was identified as the main lethal factor present in type C late-log-phase culture supernatants. This conclusion was based on monoclonal antibody neutralization studies and regression analyses in which the levels of alpha toxin, beta toxin, perfringolysin O, and beta2 toxin production were compared with lethality. Collectively, our results highlight the importance of beta toxin for type C-induced toxemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek J Fisher
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA
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116
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Voth DE, Martinez OV, Ballard JD. Variations in lethal toxin and cholesterol-dependent cytolysin production correspond to differences in cytotoxicity among strains of Clostridium sordellii. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2006; 259:295-302. [PMID: 16734793 DOI: 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2006.00287.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium sordellii is an emerging human pathogen and frequent contaminant of cadaver-derived tissue transplant material. Herein, we provide data suggesting the potential for severe C. sordellii-associated disease may be dictated by whether the specific strain produces lethal toxin (TcsL) or sordellilysin (SDL), a cholesterol-dependent cytolysin. The virulence factor profiles of 14 C. sordellii isolates were determined, and culture supernatant from six of the isolates was found to be cytotoxic to mammalian cells; yet, only one of these strains conferred cytotoxicity via production of TcsL. Cytotoxicity of TcsL- strains correlated with the production of sordellilysin, which was also recognized by an antiperfringolysin O antibody. However, supernatant from TcsL+, SDL- strains demonstrated a lower LD50 relative to TcsL-, SDL+ strains, suggesting the potential for severe C. sordellii-associated disease may be determined by the particular strain colonizing the host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel E Voth
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
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117
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Keyburn AL, Sheedy SA, Ford ME, Williamson MM, Awad MM, Rood JI, Moore RJ. Alpha-toxin of Clostridium perfringens is not an essential virulence factor in necrotic enteritis in chickens. Infect Immun 2006; 74:6496-500. [PMID: 16923791 PMCID: PMC1695520 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00806-06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 191] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The Clostridium perfringens alpha-toxin has previously been implicated as the major virulence factor in necrotic enteritis in chickens, although definitive proof has not been reported. In this study an alpha-toxin mutant was constructed in a virulent chicken isolate and shown to retain full virulence in a chicken disease model. These results demonstrated that alpha-toxin is not an essential virulence factor in the pathogenesis of necrotic enteritis in chickens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony L Keyburn
- CSIRO Livestock Industries, Private Bag 24, Geelong, Victoria 3220, Australia
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118
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Kuske CR, Barns SM, Grow CC, Merrill L, Dunbar J. Environmental survey for four pathogenic bacteria and closely related species using phylogenetic and functional genes. J Forensic Sci 2006; 51:548-58. [PMID: 16696701 DOI: 10.1111/j.1556-4029.2006.00131.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Bacterial species with high DNA sequence similarity to pathogens could affect the specificity of assays designed to detect biological threat agents in environmental samples. The natural presence of four pathogenic bacteria, Bacillus anthracis, Clostridium perfringens, Francisella tularensis, and Yersinia pestis and their closely related species, was determined for a large collection of soil and aerosol samples. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and gene sequencing were used using group-specific 16S rRNA primers to identify pathogens and related species, and pathogen-specific virulence genes. Close relatives of B. anthracis (B. cereus group species) were detected in 37% of the soils and 25% of the aerosol samples. The B. anthracis protective antigen (pag) gene or a close homolog was detected in 16 of these samples. For the other three pathogen groups, the frequency of detection was much lower, and none of the samples were positive with both the phylogenetic and virulence gene primer sets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheryl R Kuske
- Bioscience Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA.
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119
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Rehman H, Awad WA, Lindner I, Hess M, Zentek J. Clostridium perfringens alpha toxin affects electrophysiological properties of isolated jejunal mucosa of laying hens. Poult Sci 2006; 85:1298-302. [PMID: 16830872 DOI: 10.1093/ps/85.7.1298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacteria that colonize the intestinal tract can invade epithelial cells or produce toxins that cause diarrhoeal diseases. Proliferation of Clostridium perfringens and production of alpha-toxin, a phospholipase C, is the major factor for necrotic enteritis in poultry. However, little is known about the functional importance of luminal alpha-toxin during intestinal infection. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of purified alpha toxin of Clostridium perfringens on the electrophysiology of the laying hen's stripped jejunum in Ussing chambers. The effects were investigated in Experiment 1 after toxin addition to the mucosal and serosal side of the tissue, and a second experiment was performed to study the effect of the toxin on sodium-dependent glucose transport. Mucosal exposure of jejunal tissue sheets to 100 units of alpha toxin/L did not elicit electrophysiologic changes. The addition of purified alpha toxin to the serosal side induced a biphasic increase in short-circuit current (ISC) after 15 and 100 min. The magnitude of the increase of ISC of both peaks was similar, but the second phase response lasted longer. The tissue conductivity tended (P = 0.07) to be lower after 2 h of toxin addition compared with basal value when no toxin was added. In the second experiment, adding D-glucose on the mucosal side of the jejunum increased (P < 0.05) the ISC from a baseline value of 42 +/- 28 microA/cm2 to a maximal value of 103 +/- 27 microA/cm2. Preincubation with alpha-toxin almost fully inhibited this stimulation of ISC by D-glucose. The conductance of the tissues was not affected by the toxin addition. These findings indicate that alpha toxin not only causes electrogenic secretion of anions, probably due to the stimulation of chloride secretion, but also diminishes electrogenic Na+/glucose cotransport from the mucosal to serosal side in the small intestine of poultry.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Rehman
- Institute of Nutrition, Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
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120
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Miyamoto K, Fisher DJ, Li J, Sayeed S, Akimoto S, McClane BA. Complete sequencing and diversity analysis of the enterotoxin-encoding plasmids in Clostridium perfringens type A non-food-borne human gastrointestinal disease isolates. J Bacteriol 2006; 188:1585-98. [PMID: 16452442 PMCID: PMC1367241 DOI: 10.1128/jb.188.4.1585-1598.2006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Enterotoxin-producing Clostridium perfringens type A isolates are an important cause of food poisoning and non-food-borne human gastrointestinal diseases, e.g., sporadic diarrhea (SPOR) and antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). The enterotoxin gene (cpe) is usually chromosomal in food poisoning isolates but plasmid-borne in AAD/SPOR isolates. Previous studies determined that type A SPOR isolate F5603 has a plasmid (pCPF5603) carrying cpe, IS1151, and the beta2 toxin gene (cpb2), while type A SPOR isolate F4969 has a plasmid (pCPF4969) lacking cpb2 and IS1151 but carrying cpe and IS1470-like sequences. By completely sequencing these two cpe plasmids, the current study identified pCPF5603 as a 75.3-kb plasmid carrying 73 open reading frames (ORFs) and pCPF4969 as a 70.5-kb plasmid carrying 62 ORFs. These plasmids share an approximately 35-kb conserved region that potentially encodes virulence factors and carries ORFs found on the conjugative transposon Tn916. The 34.5-kb pCPF4969 variable region contains ORFs that putatively encode two bacteriocins and a two-component regulator similar to VirR/VirS, while the approximately 43.6-kb pCPF5603 variable region contains a functional cpb2 gene and several metabolic genes. Diversity studies indicated that other type A plasmid cpe+/IS1151 SPOR/AAD isolates carry a pCPF5603-like plasmid, while other type A plasmid cpe+/IS1470-like SPOR/AAD isolates carry a pCPF4969-like plasmid. Tn916-related ORFs similar to those in pCPF4969 (known to transfer conjugatively) were detected in the cpe plasmids of other type A SPOR/AAD isolates, as well as in representative C. perfringens type B to D isolates carrying other virulence plasmids, possibly suggesting that most or all C. perfringens virulence plasmids transfer conjugatively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kazuaki Miyamoto
- Department of Microbiology, Wakayama Medical University School of Medicine, Kimiidera, Japan
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121
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Abstract
AIM: To study the cloning of α-β fusion gene from Clostridium perfringens and the immunogenicity of α-β fusion expression.
METHODS: Cloning was accomplished after PCR amplification from strains NCTC64609 and C58-1 of the protective antigen genes of α-toxin and β-toxin. The fragment of the gene was cloned using plasmid pZCPAB. This fragment coded for the gene with the stable expression of α-β fusion gene binding. In order to verify the exact location of the α-β fusion gene, domain plasmids were constructed. The two genes were fused into expression vector pBV221. The expressed α-β fusion protein was identified by ELISA, SDS-PAGE, Western blotting and neutralization assay.
RESULTS: The protective α-toxin gene (cpa906) and the β-toxin gene (cpb930) were obtained. The recombinant plasmid pZCPAB carrying α-β fusion gene was constructed and transformed into BL21(DE3). The recombinant strain BL21(DE3)(pZCPAB) was obtained. After the recombinant strain BL21(DE3)(pZCPAB) was induced by 42°C,its expressed product was about 22.14% of total cellular protein at SDS-PAGE and thin-layer gel scanning analysis. Neutralization assay indicated that the antibody induced by immunization with α-β fusion protein could neutralize the toxicity of α-toxin and β-toxin.
CONCLUSION: The obtained α-toxin and β-toxin genes are correct. The recombinant strain BL21(DE3)(pZCPAB) could produce α-β fusion protein. This protein can be used for immunization and is immunogenic. The antibody induced by immunization with α-β fusion protein could neutralize the toxicity of α-toxin and β-toxin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia-Ning Bai
- College of Life Science, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang 050016, Hebei Province, China
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122
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Rooney AP, Swezey JL, Friedman R, Hecht DW, Maddox CW. Analysis of core housekeeping and virulence genes reveals cryptic lineages of Clostridium perfringens that are associated with distinct disease presentations. Genetics 2006; 172:2081-92. [PMID: 16489222 PMCID: PMC1456398 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.105.054601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens is an important human and animal pathogen that causes a number of diseases that vary in their etiology and severity. Differences between strains regarding toxin gene composition and toxin production partly explain why some strains cause radically different diseases than others. However, they do not provide a complete explanation. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a phylogenetic component that explains the variance in C. perfringens strain virulence by assessing patterns of genetic polymorphism in genes (colA gyrA, plc, pfoS, and rplL) that form part of the core genome in 248 type A strains. We found that purifying selection plays a central role in shaping the patterns of nucleotide substitution and polymorphism in both housekeeping and virulence genes. In contrast, recombination was found to be a significant factor only for the virulence genes plc and colA and the housekeeping gene gyrA. Finally, we found that the strains grouped into five distinct evolutionary lineages that show evidence of host adaptation and the early stages of speciation. The discovery of these previously unknown lineages and their association with distinct disease presentations carries important implications for human and veterinary clostridial disease epidemiology and provides important insights into the pathways through which virulence has evolved in C. perfringens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro P Rooney
- Microbial Genomics Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, U.S. Department of Agriculture--Agricultural Research Service, Peoria, Illinois 61604, USA.
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123
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Chen Y, McClane BA, Fisher DJ, Rood JI, Gupta P. Construction of an alpha toxin gene knockout mutant of Clostridium perfringens type A by use of a mobile group II intron. Appl Environ Microbiol 2005; 71:7542-7. [PMID: 16269799 PMCID: PMC1287605 DOI: 10.1128/aem.71.11.7542-7547.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In developing Clostridium perfringens as a safe vaccine vector, the alpha toxin gene (plc) in the bacterial chromosome must be permanently inactivated. Disrupting genes in C. perfringens by traditional mutagenesis methods is very difficult. Therefore, we developed a new strategy using group II intron-based Target-Tron technology to inactivate the plc gene in C. perfringens ATCC 3624. Western blot analysis showed no production of alpha toxin protein in the culture supernatant of the plc mutant. Advantages of this technology, such as site specificity, relatively high frequency of insertion, and introduction of no antibiotic resistance genes into the chromosome, could facilitate construction of other C. perfringens mutants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Chen
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.
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124
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Borrmann E, Schulze F, Cussler K, Hänel I, Diller R. Development of a cell culture assay for the quantitative determination of vaccination-induced antibodies in rabbit sera against Clostridium perfringens epsilon toxin and Clostridium novyi alpha toxin. Vet Microbiol 2005; 114:41-50. [PMID: 16361070 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2005.10.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2005] [Revised: 10/27/2005] [Accepted: 10/28/2005] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Cell culture assays are possible alternatives to replace in vivo neutralization tests currently required for potency testing of clostridial vaccines. Cell culture assays based on the MDCK cell line and the Vero cell line which are sensitive to the Clostridium (C.) perfringens type D epsilon toxin and Clostridium novyi type B alpha toxin, respectively, were developed, and the test conditions were standardized. The antibody titres of vaccinated rabbits measured in vitro were compared with the results of current test procedures recommended by European Pharmacopoeia. The correlation coefficients calculated were significant for all sera tested. The cell culture assays proved to be sensitive, specific, reproducible and reliable. Therefore, these cell culture assays could be suitable in vitro alternatives to the in vivo mouse neutralization experiments required for potency tests of clostridial vaccines, but further validation studies are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Borrmann
- Institute of Molecular Pathogenesis at the Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Naumburger Str. 96 a, D-07743 Jena, Germany.
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125
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Brüggemann H. Genomics of clostridial pathogens: implication of extrachromosomal elements in pathogenicity. Curr Opin Microbiol 2005; 8:601-5. [PMID: 16125440 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2005.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2005] [Accepted: 08/12/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The recently decoded genomes of the major clostridial toxin-producing pathogens Clostridium perfringens, Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum and Clostridium difficile have provided a huge amount of new sequence data. Recent studies have focused on the identification and investigation of pathogenic determinants and the regulatory events governing their expression. The sequence data revealed also the genomic background of virulence genes, as well as the contribution of extrachromosomal elements to a pathogenic phenotype. This has generated new insights in clostridial pathogenesis - and will continue to do so in the future - and has deepened our understanding of the anaerobic lifestyle of clostridial species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Holger Brüggemann
- Institut Pasteur, Unité de Génomique des Microorganismes Pathogènes, 28 Rue du Docteur Roux, 75 724 Paris Cedex 15, France.
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126
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Fisher DJ, Miyamoto K, Harrison B, Akimoto S, Sarker MR, McClane BA. Association of beta2 toxin production withClostridium perfringenstype A human gastrointestinal disease isolates carrying a plasmid enterotoxin gene. Mol Microbiol 2005; 56:747-62. [PMID: 15819629 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2005.04573.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 128] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium perfringens type A isolates carrying an enterotoxin (cpe) gene are an important cause of human gastrointestinal diseases, including food poisoning, antibiotic-associated diarrhoea (AAD) and sporadic diarrhoea (SD). Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the current study determined that the cpb2 gene encoding the recently discovered beta2 toxin is present in <15% of food poisoning isolates, which typically carry a chromosomal cpe gene. However, >75% of AAD/SD isolates, which usually carry a plasmid cpe gene, tested cpb2(+) by PCR. Western blot analysis demonstrated that >97% of those cpb2(+)/cpe(+) AAD/SD isolates can produce CPB2. Additional PCR analyses, sequencing studies and pulsed field gel electrophoresis experiments determined that AAD/SD isolates carry cpb2 and cpe on the same plasmid when IS1151 sequences are present downstream of cpe, but cpb2 and cpe are located on different plasmids in AAD/SD isolates where IS1470-like sequences are present downstream of cpe. Those analyses also demonstrated that two different CPB2 variants (named CPB2h1 or CPB2h2) can be produced by AAD/SD isolates, dependent on whether IS1470-like or IS1151 sequences are present downstream of their cpe gene. CPB2h1 is approximately 10-fold more cytotoxic for CaCo-2 cells than is CPB2h2. Collectively, these results suggest that CPB2 could be an accessory toxin in C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE)-associated AAD/SD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek J Fisher
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Molecular Virology and Microbiology Graduate Program, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA
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