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Clostridium perfringens ε-toxin shows structural similarity to the pore-forming toxin aerolysin

Nature Structural & Molecular Biology volume 11, pages 797–798 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

ε-Toxin from Clostridium perfringens is a lethal toxin. Recent studies suggest that the toxin acts via an unusually potent pore-forming mechanism. Here we report the crystal structure of ε-toxin, which reveals structural similarity to aerolysin from Aeromonas hydrophila. Pore-forming toxins can change conformation between soluble and transmembrane states. By comparing the two toxins, we have identified regions important for this transformation.

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Figure 1: Structures of ETX and aerolysin with domains labeled.
Figure 2: Domain II of ε-toxin.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant from the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council along with the UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. Data collection was carried out at BM14 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Crystallography, Birkbeck College, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HX, UK

    Ambrose R Cole, David S Moss & Ajit K Basak

  2. CNR Anaerobies et Botulisme, Unite Bacteries Anaerobies et Toxines, Institut Pasteur, 28 Rue du Dr Roux, Paris, 75724 Cedex 15, France

    Maryse Gibert & Michel Popoff

  3. Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury, SP4 0JQ, UK

    Richard W Titball

Authors
  1. Ambrose R Cole
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  2. Maryse Gibert
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  3. Michel Popoff
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Correspondence to Ajit K Basak.

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Supplementary information

Supplementary Table 1

Data collection and statistics. (PDF 23 kb)

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Cole, A., Gibert, M., Popoff, M. et al. Clostridium perfringens ε-toxin shows structural similarity to the pore-forming toxin aerolysin. Nat Struct Mol Biol 11, 797–798 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nsmb804

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