Clostridium perfringens type E animal enteritis isolates with highly conserved, silent enterotoxin gene sequences.

ABSTRACT: Several Clostridium perfringens genotype E isolates, all associated with hemorrhagic enteritis of neonatal calves, were identified by multiplex PCR. These genotype E isolates were demonstrated to express alpha and iota toxins, but, despite carrying sequences for the gene (cpe) encoding C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE), were unable to express CPE. These silent cpe sequences were shown to be highly conserved among type E isolates. However, relative to the functional cpe gene of type A isolates, these silent type E cpe sequences were found to contain nine nonsense and two frameshift mutations and to lack the initiation codon, promoters, and ribosome binding site. The type E animal enteritis isolates carrying these silent cpe sequences do not appear to be clonally related, and their silent typ

SUBMITTER: Billington SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC108552 | biostudies-literature | 1998 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature