title: Genotypic and phenotypic characterization of Clostridium perfringens isolates from Darmbrand cases in post-World War II Germany.
abstract: Clostridium perfringens type C strains are the only non-type-A isolates that cause human disease. They are responsible for enteritis necroticans, which was termed Darmbrand when occurring in post-World War II Germany. Darmbrand strains were initially classified as type F because of their exceptional heat resistance but later identified as type C strains. Since only limited information exists regarding Darmbrand strains, this study genetically and phenotypically characterized seven 1940s era Darmbrand-associated strains. Results obtained indicated the following. (i) Five of these Darmbrand isolates belong to type C, carry beta-toxin (cpb) and enterotoxin (cpe) genes on large plasmids, and express both beta-toxin and enterotoxin. The other two isolates are cpe-negative type A. (ii) All seven isolates produce highly heat-resistant spores with D(100) values (the time that a culture must be kept at 100°C to reduce its viability by 90%) of 7 to 40 min. (iii) All of the isolates surveyed produce the same variant small acid-soluble protein 4 (Ssp4) made by type A food poisoning isolates with a chromosomal cpe gene that also produce extremely heat-resistant spores. (iv) The Darmbrand isolates share a genetic background with type A chromosomal-cpe-bearing isolates. Finally, it was shown that both the cpe and cpb genes can be mobilized in Darmbrand isolates. These results suggest that C. perfringens type A and C strains that cause human food-borne illness share a spore heat resistance mechanism that likely favors their survival in temperature-abused food. They also suggest possible evolutionary relationships between Darmbrand strains and type A strains carrying a chromosomal cpe gene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Menglin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Jihong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Bruce A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: McClane
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D003015:Clostridium Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D003016:Clostridium perfringens / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005517:Foodborne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D005838:Genotype; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010641:Phenotype; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013171:Spores, Bacterial / Q000502:physiology; D047789:World War II
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; C031884:CPB protein, Clostridium perfringens; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004768:Enterotoxins; C035598:enterotoxin, Clostridium