Hoffmann, R. A wiki for the life sciences where authorship matters. Nature Genetics (2008)

Editor

Personal info

View

About

Terms

Javascript disabled

Please enable Javascript support in your browser to use this application.

Instructions on how to enable JavaScript on different browsers can be found here: http://www.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=23852.

[edit this page]

Burakoff, R. et al.

Effects of purified Clostridium difficile toxin A on rabbit distal colon.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Antibiotic-associated pseudomembranous colitis in humans is caused by proliferation of Clostridium difficile, which elaborates an enterotoxin toxin A that causes epithelial damage and altered motility in rabbit small intestine. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of toxin A on rabbit distal colonic motility and to relate this to histological damage and inflammatory mediator production. METHODS: Two hundred micrograms per milliliter of toxin A was placed in a distal colonic loop in anesthetized rabbits, and myoelectric activity was recorded for the following 7 hours. The colon was histologically evaluated and assayed for eicosanoid production. The effects of toxin A on longitudinal and circular muscle were also assessed in vitro. RESULTS: Beginning 1 hour after instillation, toxin A caused a significant increase in the number of spike bursts without altering slow wave frequency; this was associated with an increase in mucosal neutrophils and increased production of prostaglandin E2 and leukotrienes B4 and C4/D4/E4. Seven hours after administration of toxin A, mediator levels and myoelectric activity remained increased but significant mucosal damage was now also present. Toxin A did not affect longitudinal or circular muscle in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: C. difficile toxin A caused a significant neutrophil infiltration and an increased myoelectric activity before producing mucosal damage. The myoelectric effect may be indirect, resulting from the production of motility-altering arachidonic acid metabolites.[1]

References

Effects of purified Clostridium difficile toxin A on rabbit distal colon. Burakoff, R., Zhao, L., Celifarco, A.J., Rose, K.L., Donovan, V., Pothoulakis, C., Percy, W.H. Gastroenterology (1995) [Pubmed]

Annotations and hyperlinks in this abstract are from individual authors of WikiGenes or automatically generated by the WikiGenes Data Mining Engine. The abstract is from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.About WikiGenes Open Access Licence Privacy Policy Terms of Use apsburg

The world's first wiki where authorship really matters (Nature Genetics, 2008). Due credit and reputation for authors. Imagine a global collaborative knowledge base for original thoughts. Search thousands of articles and collaborate with scientists around the globe.