We tested the effectiveness of disinfectants and wipe methods against Clostridium difficile spores. Wiping with nonsporicidal agents (physical removal) was effective in removing more than 2.9 log(10) C. difficile spores. Wiping with sporicidal agents eliminated more than 3.90 log(10) C. difficile spores (physical removal and/or inactivation). Spraying with a sporicide eliminated more than 3.44 ...

Clostridium difficile remains the major cause of nosocomial diarrhea. Reports on impaired susceptibility of C. difficile to metronidazole and vancomycin and frequent relapses of patients after therapy necessitate the search for new substances. With this study, the activity of OPT-80, a new macrocycle, against 207 C. difficile strains and against other obligately anaerobic bacteria was tested. O...

Cycloserine-cefoxitin fructose agar (CCFA), CCFA with horse blood and taurocholate (CCFA-HT), and cycloserine-cefoxitin mannitol broth with taurocholate and lysozyme (CCMB-TAL) were compared for recovery of Clostridium difficile from 120 stool specimens. Compared to CCFA, CCFA-HT enhanced C. difficile growth and improved recovery by 4%. In a separate study, 9% (8/91) of stool samples previously...

BACKGROUND Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a leading cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. The infective form of C. difficile is the spore, but the vegetative bacterium causes the disease. Because C. difficile spore germination is required for symptomatic infection, antigermination approaches could lead to the prevention of CDI. We recently reported that CamSA, a bile salt analog, i...

The anaerobic gastrointestinal pathogen Clostridium difficile must form a metabolically dormant spore to survive in oxygenic environments and be transmitted from host to host. The regulatory factors by which C. difficile initiates and controls the early stages of sporulation in C. difficile are not highly conserved in other Clostridium or Bacillus species. Here, we investigated the role of two ...

Clostridium difficile is a nosocomial pathogen that causes a serious toxin-mediated enteric disease in humans. Reducing C. difficile toxin production could significantly minimize its pathogenicity and improve disease outcomes in humans. This study investigated the efficacy of two, food-grade, plant-derived compounds, namely trans-cinnamaldehyde (TC) and carvacrol (CR) in reducing C. difficile t...

Phages that infect Clostridium difficile were first isolated for typing purposes in the 1980s, but their use was short lived. However, the rise of C. difficile epidemics over the last decade has triggered a resurgence of interest in using phages to combat this pathogen. Phage therapy is an attractive treatment option for C. difficile infection, however, developing suitable phages is challenging...

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcal foodborne intoxication is the most common cause of foodborne illnesses by Staphylococcus aureus strains and most are caused by the enterotoxins of S. aureus. Staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA) is the most frequently responsible for staphylococcal food poisoning outbreaks. From a food safety and human health point of view, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) may provide a promi...

Molecular typing is an essential tool to monitor Clostridium difficile infections and outbreaks within healthcare facilities. Molecular typing also plays a key role in defining the regional and global changes in circulating C. difficile types. The patterns of C. difficile types circulating within Europe (and globally) remain poorly understood, although international efforts are under way to und...

Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is a common causative agent of pseudomembranous colitis (PMC). C. difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD) ranges from mild diarrhea to life threatening PMC. Recently, a highly virulent strain of C. difficile polymerase chain reaction ribotype 027 was found in North America, Europe, and Japan. A 52-yr-old woman with anti-tuberculosis medication and neurogenic bl...