Clostridium difficile
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyOutbreak of Murine Infection with Clostridium difficile Associated with the Administration of a Pre- and Perinatal Methyl Donor DietClostridium difficile infection (CDI) has become the leading cause of infectious diarrhea in hospitals worldwide, owing its preeminence to the emergence of hyperendemic strains, such as ribotype 027 (RT027). A major CDI risk factor is antibiotic exposure, which alters gut microbiota, resulting in the loss of colonization resistance. Current murine models of CDI also...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Gut Microbiota Is Associated with Clearance of Clostridium difficile Infection Independent of Adaptive ImmunityClostridium difficile infection is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients in the United States. Currently, the role of the adaptive immune response in modulating levels of C. difficile colonization is unresolved. This work suggests that the indigenous gut microbiota is a...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyCyclic Diguanylate Regulates Virulence Factor Genes via Multiple Riboswitches in Clostridium difficileIn Clostridium difficile, the signaling molecule c-di-GMP regulates multiple processes affecting its ability to cause disease, including swimming and surface motility, biofilm formation, toxin production, and intestinal colonization. In this study, we used RNA-seq to define the transcriptional regulon of c-di-GMP in...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyGerminant Synergy Facilitates Clostridium difficile Spore Germination under Physiological ConditionsClostridium difficile is an anaerobic spore-forming human pathogen that is the leading cause of nosocomial infectious diarrhea worldwide. Germination of infectious spores is the first step in the development of a C. difficile infection (CDI) after ingestion and passage through the stomach. This...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyClostridium difficile Lipoprotein GerS Is Required for Cortex Modification and Thus Spore GerminationThe Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium Clostridium difficile is a leading cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Because C. difficile is an obligate anaerobe, its aerotolerant spores are essential for transmitting disease, and their germination into toxin-producing cells is necessary for...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyClostridium difficile Alters the Structure and Metabolism of Distinct Cecal Microbiomes during Initial Infection To Promote Sustained ColonizationClostridium difficile has become the most common single cause of hospital-acquired infection over the last decade in the United States. Colonization resistance to the nosocomial pathogen is primarily provided by the gut microbiota, which is also involved in clearing the infection as the community recovers from perturbation. As distinct antibiotics are associated with...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyAn Observational Cohort Study of Clostridium difficile Ribotype 027 and Recurrent InfectionCDI is a major public health issue, with over 400,000 cases per year in the United States alone. Recurrent CDI is common, occurring in approximately one in five individuals after a primary episode. Although interventions exist that could reduce the risk of recurrence, deployment in all patients is limited by cost, invasiveness, and/or an undetermined long-term safety profile. Thus, clinicians need risk stratification tools to properly...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyShifts in the Gut Metabolome and Clostridium difficile Transcriptome throughout Colonization and Infection in a Mouse ModelClostridium difficile is a bacterial pathogen of global significance that is a major cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Antibiotics deplete the indigenous gut microbiota and change the metabolic environment in the gut to one favoring C. difficile growth. Here we used metabolomics and...
Research Article | Applied and Environmental ScienceStructural Characterization of Clostridium sordellii Spores of Diverse Human, Animal, and Environmental Origin and Comparison to Clostridium difficile SporesClostridium sordellii is a significant pathogen with mortality rates approaching 100%. It is the bacterial spore that is critical in initiating infection and disease. An understanding of spore structures as well as spore morphology across a range of strains may lead to a better understanding of C. sordellii infection and disease. However, the structural...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyThe Conserved Spore Coat Protein SpoVM Is Largely Dispensable in Clostridium difficile Spore FormationThe spore-forming obligate anaerobe Clostridium difficile is the leading cause of antibiotic-associated diarrheal disease in the United States. When C. difficile spores are ingested by susceptible individuals, they germinate within the gut and transform into vegetative, toxin-secreting cells. During...