Surface layer proteins from virulent Clostridium difficile ribotypes exhibit signatures of positive selection with consequences for innate immune response.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Clostridium difficile is a nosocomial pathogen prevalent in hospitals worldwide and increasingly common in the community. Sequence differences have been shown to be present in the Surface Layer Proteins (SLPs) from different C. difficile ribotypes (RT) however whether these differences influence severity of infection is still not clear.

Results

We used a molecular evolutionary approach to analyse SLPs from twenty-six C. difficile RTs representing different slpA sequences. We demonstrate that SLPs from RT 027 and 078 exhibit evidence of positive selection (PS). We compared the effect of these SLPs to those purified from RT 001 and 014, which did not exhibit PS, and demonstrate that the presence of sites under positive selection correlates with ability to activate m

SUBMITTER: Lynch M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5364705 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature