title: Comparative study of immunological properties and cytotoxic effects of Clostridium difficile toxin B and Clostridium sordellii toxin L.
abstract: We compared the immunological properties and cytotoxic effects of Clostridium difficile toxin B and Clostridium sordellii toxin L. These two cytotoxins are immunologically related in that the cytotoxic effect of either toxin can be neutralized by the polyclonal antiserum prepared against either cytotoxin. On the other hand, polyclonal antiserum prepared against Clostridium difficile enterotoxin A did not cross-react with the cytotoxins B and L when tested by cytotoxic neutralization test nor by double immunodiffusion assay. However, despite this immunological relationship between toxins B and L, the morphological modifications observed in MacCoy cells induced by treatment with these cytotoxins are clearly distinct. We describe the first quantitative analysis of specific cellular parameters which illustrates the morphological differences induced by these cytotoxins. Moreover, immunocytochemical experiments show that, whereas disruption of microfilaments is observed with toxin B- and L-treatments, alterations of F-actin network are different in the cells treated with toxin B or L. The observation that the cellular modifications induced by toxin B- and toxin L-treatment differ suggests that the molecular mechanisms involved in the respective cytotoxicities are also likely to be different.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Bactériologie, Faculté de Médecine, Université Louis Pasteur, 3, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Baldacini
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Girardot
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rihn
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Monteil
mesh_terms: D008841:Actin Cytoskeleton / Q000187:drug effects; D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000633:toxicity; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D016360:Clostridioides difficile; D003013:Clostridium; D003429:Cross Reactions; D003603:Cytotoxins / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000633:toxicity; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000633:toxicity; D006801:Humans; D011817:Rabbits
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D003603:Cytotoxins; D004768:Enterotoxins; C041348:tcdA protein, Clostridium difficile; C031815:toxB protein, Clostridium difficile; C073548:toxin L, Clostridium sordellii