Related Research Articles
Clostridioides difficile infection , also known as Clostridium difficile infection, is a symptomatic infection due to the spore-forming bacterium Clostridioides difficile. Symptoms include watery diarrhea, fever, nausea, and abdominal pain. It makes up about 20% of cases of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Antibiotics can contribute to detrimental changes in gut microbiota; specifically, they decrease short-chain fatty acid absorption which results in osmotic, or watery, diarrhea. Complications may include pseudomembranous colitis, toxic megacolon, perforation of the colon, and sepsis.
Clostridium perfringens is a Gram-positive, bacillus (rod-shaped), anaerobic, spore-forming pathogenic bacterium of the genus Clostridium. C. perfringens is ever-present in nature and can be found as a normal component of decaying vegetation, marine sediment, the intestinal tract of humans and other vertebrates, insects, and soil. It has the shortest reported generation time of any organism at 6.3 minutes in thioglycolate medium.
The Clostridia are a highly polyphyletic class of Bacillota, including Clostridium and other similar genera. They are distinguished from the Bacilli by lacking aerobic respiration. They are obligate anaerobes and oxygen is toxic to them. Species of the class Clostridia are often but not always Gram-positive and have the ability to form spores. Studies show they are not a monophyletic group, and their relationships are not entirely certain. Currently, most are placed in a single order called Clostridiales, but this is not a natural group and is likely to be redefined in the future.
Virulence factors are cellular structures, molecules and regulatory systems that enable microbial pathogens to achieve the following:
Defensin, alpha 5 (DEFA5) also known as human alpha defensin 5 (HD5) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the DEFA5 gene. DEFA5 is expressed in the Paneth cells of the ileum.
Clostridium difficile toxin B is a cytotoxin produced by the bacteria Clostridioides difficile, formerly known as Clostridium difficile. It is one of two major kinds of toxins produced by C. difficile, the other being a related enterotoxin. Both are very potent and lethal.
Clostridioides difficile toxin A (TcdA) is a toxin produced by the bacteria Clostridioides difficile, formerly known as Clostridium difficile. It is similar to Clostridium difficile Toxin B. The toxins are the main virulence factors produced by the gram positive, anaerobic, Clostridioides difficile bacteria. The toxins function by damaging the intestinal mucosa and cause the symptoms of C. difficile infection, including pseudomembranous colitis.
The AB toxins are two-component protein complexes secreted by a number of pathogenic bacteria, though there is a pore-forming AB toxin found in the eggs of a snail. They can be classified as Type III toxins because they interfere with internal cell function. They are named AB toxins due to their components: the "A" component is usually the "active" portion, and the "B" component is usually the "binding" portion. The "A" subunit possesses enzyme activity, and is transferred to the host cell following a conformational change in the membrane-bound transport "B" subunit. These proteins consist of two independent polypeptides, which correspond to the A/B subunit moieties. The enzyme component (A) enters the cell through endosomes produced by the oligomeric binding/translocation protein (B), and prevents actin polymerisation through ADP-ribosylation of monomeric G-actin.
Clostridium butyricum is a strictly anaerobic endospore-forming Gram-positive butyric acid–producing bacillus subsisting by means of fermentation using an intracellularly accumulated amylopectin-like α-polyglucan (granulose) as a substrate. It is uncommonly reported as a human pathogen and is widely used as a probiotic in Japan, Korea, and China. C. butyricum is a soil inhabitant in various parts of the world, has been cultured from the stool of healthy children and adults, and is common in soured milk and cheeses. The connection with dairy products is shown by the name, the butyr- in butyricum reflects the relevance of butyric acid in the bacteria's metabolism and the connection with Latin butyrum and Greek βούτυρον, with word roots pertaining to butter and cheese.
Fidaxomicin, sold under the brand name Dificid among others, is the first member of a class of narrow spectrum macrocyclic antibiotic drugs called tiacumicins. It is a fermentation product obtained from the actinomycete Dactylosporangium aurantiacum subspecies hamdenesis. Fidaxomicin is minimally absorbed into the bloodstream when taken orally, is bactericidal, and selectively eradicates pathogenic Clostridioides difficile with relatively little disruption to the multiple species of bacteria that make up the normal, healthy intestinal microbiota. The maintenance of normal physiological conditions in the colon may reduce the probability of recurrence of Clostridioides difficile infection.
Holins are a diverse group of small proteins produced by dsDNA bacteriophages in order to trigger and control the degradation of the host's cell wall at the end of the lytic cycle. Holins form pores in the host's cell membrane, allowing lysins to reach and degrade peptidoglycan, a component of bacterial cell walls. Holins have been shown to regulate the timing of lysis with great precision. Over 50 unrelated gene families encode holins, making them the most diverse group of proteins with common function. Together with lysins, holins are being studied for their potential use as antibacterial agents.
Bezlotoxumab, sold under the brand name Zinplava, is a human monoclonal antibody designed for the prevention of recurrence of Clostridioides difficile infections.
Clostridioides difficile is a bacterium known for causing serious diarrheal infections, and may also cause colon cancer. It is known also as C. difficile, or C. diff, and is a Gram-positive species of spore-forming bacteria. Clostridioides spp. are anaerobic, motile bacteria, ubiquitous in nature and especially prevalent in soil. Its vegetative cells are rod-shaped, pleomorphic, and occur in pairs or short chains. Under the microscope, they appear as long, irregular cells with a bulge at their terminal ends. Under Gram staining, C. difficile cells are Gram-positive and show optimum growth on blood agar at human body temperatures in the absence of oxygen. C. difficile is catalase- and superoxide dismutase-negative, and produces up to three types of toxins: enterotoxin A, cytotoxin B and Clostridioides difficile transferase. Under stress conditions, the bacteria produce spores that are able to tolerate extreme conditions that the active bacteria cannot tolerate.
In medicine, denudation refers to the loss of surface layers, such as the epithelium. Denudation coupled with peeling and cracking of skin gives rise to a "crazy pavement dermatosis" pattern seen in Kwashiorkor or Kwashiorkor-Marasmus complex.
The Clostridial Cytotoxin (CCT) Family is a member of the RTX-toxin superfamily. There are currently 13 classified members belonging to the CCT family. A representative list of these proteins is available in the Transporter Classification Database. Homologues are found in a variety of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
Ridinilazole is an investigational small molecule antibiotic being evaluated for oral administration to treat Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). In vitro, it is bactericidal against C. difficile and suppresses bacterial toxin production; the mechanism of action is thought to involve inhibition of cell division. It has properties which are desirable for the treatment of CDI, namely that it is a narrow-spectrum antibiotic which exhibits activity against C. difficile while having little impact on other normal intestinal flora and that it is only minimally absorbed systemically after oral administration. At the time ridinilazole was developed, there were only three antibiotics in use for treating CDI: vancomycin, fidaxomicin, and metronidazole. The recurrence rate of CDI is high, which has spurred research into other treatment options with the aim to reduce the rate of recurrence.
The Phage 21 S Family is a member of the Holin Superfamily II.
The Lambda Holin S Family is a group of integral membrane transporter proteins belonging to the Holin Superfamily III. Members of this family generally consist of the characteristic three transmembrane segments (TMSs) and are of 110 amino acyl residues (aas) in length, on average. A representative list of members belonging to this family can be found in the Transporter Classification Database.
The Holin superfamily IV is a superfamily of integral membrane transport proteins. It is one of the seven different holin superfamilies in total.
The Holin Hol44 (Hol44) Family is a group of transporters belonging to the Holin Superfamily V. A representative list of proteins belonging to the Hol44 family from caudovirales and Bacillota can be found in the Transporter Classification Database.
References
- ↑ Reddy, Bhaskara L.; Saier Jr., Milton H. (2013-11-01). "Topological and phylogenetic analyses of bacterial holin families and superfamilies". Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes. 1828 (11): 2654–2671. doi:10.1016/j.bbamem.2013.07.004. PMC 3788059 . PMID 23856191.
- ↑ Spigaglia, Patrizia; Mastrantonio, Paola (2002-09-01). "Molecular analysis of the pathogenicity locus and polymorphism in the putative negative regulator of toxin production (TcdC) among Clostridium difficile clinical isolates". Journal of Clinical Microbiology. 40 (9): 3470–3475. doi:10.1128/jcm.40.9.3470-3475.2002. ISSN 0095-1137. PMC 130716 . PMID 12202595.
- ↑ Cohen, S. H.; Tang, Y. J.; Silva, J. (2000-02-01). "Analysis of the pathogenicity locus in Clostridium difficile strains". The Journal of Infectious Diseases. 181 (2): 659–663. doi: 10.1086/315248 . ISSN 0022-1899. PMID 10669352.
As of this edit, this article uses content from "1.E.19 The Clostridium difficile TcdE Holin (TcdE Holin) Family" , which is licensed in a way that permits reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, but not under the GFDL. All relevant terms must be followed.
 | This membrane protein–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |