CLOSTRIDIUM difficile is a Gram-positive sporeforming anaerobic bacillus, which is found in the stool flora of 25-80% of healthy infants but rarely in the stool of healthy adults and children over the age of 12 months…

Background: We undertook this study to investigate the presence of C. perfringenes in two groups of diarrheal patients (IBD and non- IBD patients).Methods: A total of 97 stool samples were obtained from patients with gastroenteritis, including 55 (5.85%) from non- IBD patients and 39 (41.5%) from IBD patients. The stool samples were examined for the detection of C. perfringenes and C. difficile after treatment with buffer salin phosphate. The treated samples were cultured on Neomycin Egg Yolk Agar plates supplemented with 5% horse blood and CCFA for isolation of C. perfringens and C. difficile, respectively and incubated at 37oC under anaerobic conditions for 2 days. PCR was done on the extracted DNAs of C. difficile and C. perfringenes colonies for toxin encoding genes tcdA, tcdB and cpe.Results: Out of the 97 stool samples tested, C. perfringenes and C. difficile were detected in 19 (20.2%) and 10 (10.3%) samples, respectively. Two isolates of C. perfringens (2.1%) and 10 (10.3%) isolates of C. difficile were positive for cpe, tcdA, and tcdB toxin encoding genes. No association was found between type of infection in IBD and non-IBD patients groups.Conclusion: Overgrowth of toxigenic strains of C. perfringens beyond C. difficile in diarrheal patients proposes their clinical significance that should be considered by physicians.

Purpose: Multiple Sclerosis is a vascular disease in the central nervous system. There is evidence that CLOSTRIDIUM perfringens epsilon toxin causes damage to the myelin of the neuronal cells by increasing the permeability of the blood-brain barrier, and therefore contributes to the disease. Therefore, the aim of this study was the molecular identification of C. perfringens Epsilon toxin in samples isolated from multiple sclerosis patients using multiplex-PCR. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 60 stool samples of patients with multiple sclerosis and 60 specimens of healthy individuals were studied. -toxin producing C. perfringens infection was examined by the M-PCR method after genomic DNA extraction. Results: of 60 fecal specimens obtained from patients with multiple sclerosis, 11 (18. 3%) and 2 (3. 3%) samples were positive for 16S rRNA and ε-toxin-encoding gene, respectively. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the prevalence of C. perfringens toxigenic strains in MS patients are higher than in the control group, which can indicate the association between the presence of this toxin and MS disease.

The aim of the study was the analysis of Lithuanian honeys for the presence of the spores ofCLOSTRIDIUM botulinum. The analyses were performed on multifloral, honeydew, nectar-honeydew, rape, buckwheat, heather and linden honey bought in direct sale. Prior to culture on solid media the samples were prepared by supernatant filtration method and cultured in parallel in Cooked Meat Medium (CMM) and Tripticase Peptone Glucose Yeast (TPGY) enrichment broths. Bacteria of typical phenotypic features were obtained by culture method from 48 honey samples. Identification ofCLOSTRIDIUM botulinum types A, B, E and F was performed with the use of multiplex-PCR method. The prevalence analysis showed 30 (60%) samples contaminated withClostrdium botulinum spores. The major serotype detected was type A: 20 (66.6%) positive honey samples; while type B was found in 7 samples (23.3%), type E in 4 samples (13.3%) and type F in 3 (10%) positive honey samples. Contamination with more than one type ofC. botulinum spores was observed in 3 honey samples.