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Clostridium perfringens (formerly known as C. welchii, or Bacillus welchii) is a Gram-positive, bacillus (rod-shaped), anaerobic, spore-forming pathogenic bacterium of the genus Clostridium. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] C. perfringens is ever-present in nature and can be found as a normal component of decaying vegetation, marine sediment , the intestinal tract ...
Clostridium perfringens alpha toxin is a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) and is responsible for gas gangrene and myonecrosis in infected tissues. The toxin also possesses hemolytic activity.
Clostridium perfringens beta toxin is one of the four major lethal protein toxins produced by Clostridium perfringens Type B and Type C strains. [1] It is a necrotizing agent and it induces hypertension by release of catecholamine .
The key Clostridium septicum virulence factor is a pore-forming toxin called alpha-toxin, though it is unrelated to the Clostridium perfringens alpha-toxin. Clostridium sordellii can also produce two major toxins: all known virulent strains produce the essential virulence factor lethal toxin (TcsL), and a number also produce haemorrhagic toxin ...
Clostridium perfringens causes a wide range of symptoms, from food poisoning to cellulitis, fasciitis, necrotic enteritis and gas gangrene. [16] [17] Clostridium tetani causes tetanus. Several more pathogenic species, that were previously described in Clostridium, have been found to belong to other genera. [6]
Gas gangrene is a bacterial infection that produces gas within tissues. It can be caused by Clostridium, most commonly alpha toxin-producing C. perfringens, or various nonclostridial species. [9] [19] Infection spreads rapidly as the gases produced by the bacteria expand and infiltrate healthy tissue in the vicinity.
Similarly, these infections vary in length, from 24 hours (clostridium perfringens) to upwards of a week (campylobacter). The incubation time for E. coli is most commonly three to four days.
The major virulence factor of C. perfringens is the CPE enterotoxin, which is secreted upon invasion of the host gut, and contributes to food poisoning and other gastrointestinal illnesses. [3] It has a molecular weight of 35.3 kDa, and is responsible for the disintegration of tight junctions between epithelial cells in the gut. [6]