Initiation of Bacterial Spore Germination

Workshop report: modeling the molecular mechanism of bacterial spore germination and elucidating reasons for germination heterogeneity.

Over the course of 2 days, top researchers in the fields of bacterial spore biology and computational biology discussed approaches to determine the cause of spore germination heterogeneity. Biological and mathematical data gaps were identified, and experimental approaches and computational strategies for modeling spore germination were presented and evaluated. As a result of these interactions,...

Ecophysiology of Development: Spore Germination

Ecophysiology of Development: Spore Germination

Tissue Sap on Spore Germination

Inhibiting the initiation of Clostridium difficile spore germination using analogs of chenodeoxycholic acid, a bile acid.

To cause disease, Clostridium difficile spores must germinate in the host gastrointestinal tract. Germination is initiated upon exposure to glycine and certain bile acids, e.g., taurocholate. Chenodeoxycholate, another bile acid, inhibits taurocholate-mediated germination. By applying Michaelis-Menten kinetic analysis to C. difficile spore germination, we found that chenodeoxycholate is a compe...