The requirement for co-germinants during Clostridium difficile spore germination is influenced by mutations in yabG and cspA.

ABSTRACT: Clostridium difficile spore germination is critical for the transmission of disease. C. difficile spores germinate in response to cholic acid derivatives, such as taurocholate (TA), and amino acids, such as glycine or alanine. Although the receptor with which bile acids are recognized (germinant receptor) is known, the amino acid co-germinant receptor has remained elusive. Here, we used EMS mutagenesis to generate mutants with altered requirements for the amino acid co-germinant, similar to the strategy we used previously to identify the bile acid germinant receptor, CspC. Surprisingly, we identified strains that do not require co-germinants, and the mutant spores germinated in response to TA alone. Upon sequencing these mutants, we identified different mutations in yabG. In C. difficile,

SUBMITTER: Shrestha R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6464247 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature