Staphylococcal enterotoxins.
Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen that produces a wide array of toxins, thus causing various types of disease symptoms. Staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs), a family of nine major serological types of heat stable enterotoxins, are a leading cause of gastroenteritis resulting from consumption of contaminated food. In addition, SEs are powerful superantigens that stimulate non-specific T-cell proliferation. SEs share close phylogenetic relationships, with similar structures and activities. Here we review the structure and function of each known enterotoxin.
Balaban
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Department of Medical Pathology, University of California, Davis 95616, USA.
Rasooly
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D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005506:Food Contamination; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D013202:Staphylococcal Food Poisoning / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D018089:Superantigens / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology
D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D004768:Enterotoxins; D018089:Superantigens