Article
Genetic characteristics of toxigenic Clostridia and toxin gene evolution.
Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology - 1 Dec 2013
Popoff Michel R, Bouvet Philippe
Abstract excerpt
Clostridia comprise a heterogenous group of environmental bacteria containing 15 pathogenic species, which produce the most potent toxins. The origin of toxins is still enigmatic. It is hypothesized that toxins exhibiting an enzymatic activity have derived from hydrolytic enzymes, which are abundantly secreted by these bacteria, and that pore-forming toxins have evolved from an ancestor transmembrane protein. The...
Topics
- Bacterial Toxins
- Botulinum Toxins
- Calcium-Binding Proteins
- Chromosomes, Bacterial
- Clostridioides difficile
- Clostridium
- Clostridium botulinum
- Clostridium perfringens
- DNA Transposable Elements
- DNA, Bacterial