Abstract
The aim of the present study was to analyse the genetic diversity of the alpha-toxin encoding plc gene and the variation in alpha-toxin production of Clostridium perfringens type A strains isolated from presumably healthy chickens and chickens suffering from either necrotic enteritis (NE) or cholangio-hepatitis. The alpha-toxin encoding plc genes from 60 different pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) types (strains) of C. perfringens were sequenced and translated in silico to amino acid sequences and the alpha-toxin production was investigated in batch cultures of 45 of the strains using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) approach. Overall, the truncated amino acid sequences showed close similarity (>98% at the amino acid level) to previously reported sequences from chicken-derived C. perfringens isolates. Variations were however observed in 23 out of 379 aa positions leading to the definition of 26 different alpha-toxin sequence types among the 60 strains. Moreover, a type II intron of 834 non-coding nucleotides was identified in the plc gene of three of the investigated strains. The in vitro alpha-toxin production investigated in 45 of the strains, including the three harbouring the intron, revealed no correlation between PFGE type, alpha-toxin sequence type, health status of the host chickens and level of alpha-toxin production. It is therefore concluded that neither plc gene type nor alpha-toxin production level seems to correlate to origin (healthy or diseased chicken) of the C. perfringens strains.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Amino Acid Sequence
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Animals
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Bacterial Toxins / genetics*
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Base Sequence
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Calcium-Binding Proteins / genetics*
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Chickens*
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Clostridium Infections / microbiology
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Clostridium Infections / veterinary*
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Clostridium perfringens / genetics*
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Clostridium perfringens / isolation & purification
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Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / veterinary
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Genes, Bacterial
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Genetic Variation
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Molecular Sequence Data
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Poultry Diseases / microbiology*
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RNA, Bacterial / chemistry
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RNA, Bacterial / genetics
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Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / veterinary
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Type C Phospholipases / genetics*
Substances
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Bacterial Toxins
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Calcium-Binding Proteins
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RNA, Bacterial
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Type C Phospholipases
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alpha toxin, Clostridium perfringens
Associated data
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GENBANK/EU839779
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GENBANK/EU839780
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GENBANK/EU839781
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GENBANK/EU839782
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GENBANK/EU839783
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GENBANK/EU839784
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GENBANK/EU839785
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GENBANK/EU839786
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GENBANK/EU839787
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GENBANK/EU839788
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GENBANK/EU839789
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GENBANK/EU839790
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GENBANK/EU839791
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GENBANK/EU839792
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GENBANK/EU839793
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GENBANK/EU839794
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GENBANK/EU839795
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GENBANK/EU839796
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GENBANK/EU839797
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GENBANK/EU839798
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GENBANK/EU839799
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GENBANK/EU839800
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GENBANK/EU839801
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GENBANK/EU839802
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GENBANK/EU839803
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GENBANK/EU839804
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GENBANK/EU839805
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GENBANK/EU839806
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GENBANK/EU839807
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GENBANK/EU839808
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GENBANK/EU839809
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GENBANK/EU839810
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GENBANK/EU839811
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GENBANK/EU839812
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GENBANK/EU839813
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GENBANK/EU839822
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GENBANK/EU839823
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GENBANK/EU839824
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GENBANK/EU839825
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GENBANK/EU839826
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GENBANK/EU839827
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GENBANK/EU839828
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GENBANK/EU839829
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GENBANK/EU839830
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GENBANK/EU839831
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GENBANK/EU839832
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GENBANK/EU839833
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GENBANK/EU839834
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GENBANK/EU839835
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GENBANK/EU839836
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GENBANK/EU839837
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GENBANK/EU839838