The Increasing Prevalence of Clostridium Difficile in North America

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Medical illustration of Clostridium difficile cell. Credit to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


By Aly Palia

Clostridium difficile infection, or CDI, has become more prevalent through both the United States and Canada in recent years. The infection is spread by spores of the bacteria Clostridium difficile, also known as C. diff. The bacteria themselves are very common in the soil and can be found in the human intestine. In fact, C. difficile exists in around 2-5% of the adult population [1]. When they are in a stressful environment, the bacteria will produce spores that can tolerate more extreme conditions than the bacteria themselves. The bacteria become pathogenic when these spores are produced in the human gut. The spores contain toxins, such as enterotoxin (Clostridium difficile toxin A) and cytotoxin (Clostridium difficile toxin B). Patients with these spores can have diarrhea and inflammation in the body. While the majority of the infections from C. diff can be treated with antibiotics, there are some strains that are increasing in their antibiotic resistance [2]. Thus, many patients with CDIs aren’t able to receive adequate treatment for their infections, so many cases are becoming more severe.

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Bacteria and Spores

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File:CDiffSpores.png
Clostridium Difficile bacteria through colored transmission electron micrograph. Spores (pale ovals within cells) can survive without the cell itself. Credit to Southampton General Hospital Biomedical Imaging Unit.

Risk Factors and Transmission

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Symptoms

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File:CDiffBody.png
How Clostridium Difficile affects the body. Credit to Envirosystems.


Treatments

Conclusion

Increasing Prevalence

References

  1. ↑ Ryan KJ, Ray CG (2004). Sherris Medical Microbiology (4th ed.). McGraw Hill. 322-4.
  2. ↑ [http://www.emedicinehealth.com/clostridium_difficile_c_difficile_c_diff/article_em.htm=PDF Nabili, Siamak N. "Clostridium Difficile." EMedicineHealth. Ed. Melissa Conrad Stoppler and Bhupinder Anand. N.p., 26 June 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.
  3. ↑ Hodgkin, J. and Partridge, F.A. "Caenorhabditis elegans meets microsporidia: the nematode killers from Paris." 2008. PLoS Biology 6:2634-2637.
  4. ↑ Bartlett et al.: Oncolytic viruses as therapeutic cancer vaccines. Molecular Cancer 2013 12:103.



Authored for BIOL 238 Microbiology, taught by Joan Slonczewski, 2017, Kenyon College.

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