ArticleThe Journal of infectious diseases2013
Recombinational switching of the Clostridium difficile S-layer and a novel glycosylation gene cluster revealed by large-scale whole-genome sequencing.
Article in The Journal of infectious diseases, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 56 papers.
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Who cites it
56 citing papers in PubMed, 95 citations in OpenAlex.
- The prevalence and molecular epidemiology ofEmerging microbes & infections · 2026Observational
- The effects of hitchhiking and repulsion of deleterious alleles on linkage disequilibrium during a selective sweep.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- From colonization to infection: Genomic evolution of Clostridioides difficile pathogenesis.Cell reports · 2026Review
- Complex adaptive architectures constrain the pace of adaptations sweeping across human gut microbiomes.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Article
- Immune Aspects of Clostridioides difficile Infection and Vaccine Development.Infectious disease clinics of North America · 2025Review
- Structural determinants of SlpA-mediated phage recognition in Clostridioides difficile.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Vaccine-enhanced competition permits rational bacterial strain replacement in the gut.Science (New York, N.Y.) · 2025Article
- Bioengineered Probiotics for Clostridioides difficile Infection: An Overview of the Challenges and Potential for This New Treatment Approach.Probiotics and antimicrobial proteins · 2025Review
- Genomic analysis of a novel ST11(PR34365)Open life sciences · 2025Article
- PPAR-γ agonist mitigates intestinal barrier dysfunction and inflammation induced by Clostridioides difficile SlpA in vitro.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- RecGraph: recombination-aware alignment of sequences to variation graphs.Bioinformatics (Oxford, England) · 2024Article
- Pathogenicity and virulence ofVirulence · 2023Review
- An intact S-layer is advantageous to Clostridioides difficile within the host.PLoS pathogens · 2023Article
- Host Immune Responses to Surface S-Layer Proteins (SLPs) ofMicroorganisms · 2023Review
- Review
- S-layer proteins as immune players: Tales from pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria.Current research in microbial sciences · 2023Review
- Potential Role of the Host-Derived Cell-Wall Binding Domain of Endolysin CD16/50L as a Molecular Anchor in Preservation of Uninfected Clostridioides difficile for New Rounds of Phage Infection.Microbiology spectrum · 2022Article
- TheMicrobiology spectrum · 2022Article
- A Novel Bacteriophage with Broad Host Range against Clostridioides difficile Ribotype 078 Supports SlpA as the Likely Phage Receptor.Microbiology spectrum · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
17 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundClostridium difficile is a major cause of nosocomial diarrhea, with 30-day mortality reaching 30%. The cell surface comprises a paracrystalline proteinaceous S-layer encoded by the slpA gene within the cell wall protein (cwp) gene cluster. Our purpose was to understand the diversity and evolution of slpA and nearby genes also encoding immunodominant cell surface antigens.
methodsWhole-genome sequences were determined for 57 C. difficile isolates representative of the population structure and different clinical phenotypes. Phylogenetic analyses were performed on their genomic region (>63 kb) spanning the cwp cluster.
resultsGenetic diversity across the cwp cluster peaked within slpA, cwp66 (adhesin), and secA2 (secretory translocase). These genes formed a 10-kb cassette, of which 12 divergent variants were found. Homologous recombination involving this cassette caused it to associate randomly with genotype. One cassette contained a novel insertion (length, approximately 24 kb) that resembled S-layer glycosylation gene clusters.
conclusionsGenetic exchange of S-layer cassettes parallels polysaccharide capsular switching in other species. Both cause major antigenic shifts, while the remainder of the genome is unchanged. C. difficile genotype is therefore not predictive of antigenic type. S-layer switching and immune escape could help explain temporal and geographic variation in C. difficile epidemiology and may inform genotyping and vaccination strategies.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.