Distinction between Clostridium botulinum type A strains associated with food-borne botulism and those with infant botulism in Japan in intraintestinal toxin production in infant mice and some other properties

Abstract

Two strains of Clostridium botulinum type A associated with food-borne botulism and six strains associated with infant botulism in Japan were compared in intraintestinal toxin production in infant mice, in vitro toxin and hemagglutinin production, molecular sizes of the toxins, and some other properties. The infant botulism-associated strains, producing M toxin (Mr 300 kDa) but no hemagglutinin, showed significantly lower 50% infective doses in infant mouse intestines. The antigenicities of the toxin differed between the two groups, while the biochemical properties of the cultures did not. Besides infant botulism-associated strains, this set of properties were found only in a strain isolated from honey of South American origin.

Differentiation of the Gene Clusters Encoding Botulinum Neurotoxin Type A Complexes in Clostridium botulinum Type A, Ab, and A(B) Strains

“…All 33 strains of C. botulinum type A isolated in Italy displayed a combination consistent with the type A2 gene cluster; they were negative for the ha33 gene and positive for the p47 gene and revealed a boNT/A2 gene sequence type. Strains of C. botulinum type A2 were first described in Japan (29,34); two additional strains were later identified by Cordoba et al (one from the United Kingdom and one from Mauritius) (5). Considering that type A2 strains have rarely been described worldwide, the fact that all of the strains of C. botulinum type A isolated to date in Italy are type A2 is outstanding.…”

Comparative Studies on Clostridium Botulinum Type a Strains Associated With Infant Botulism in Japan and in California, Usa

“…3). Strain 89EO0120-1 Such aberrant type A strains do not seem to be indigenous to Japan, since all infant botulism cases in Japan had been fed honey before onset of disease and, in one case, the honey fed was an imported one; and we isolated such an aberrant type A strain from a honey sample of Brazilian origin (1). …”

“…All cases had been fed honey before onset of symptoms and C. botulinum type A was isolated from the honey fed to five cases (1).…”

Immunological Characterization of the Neurotoxin Produced by Clostridium botulinum Type A Associated with Infant Botulism in Japan

“…Eight strains were used in this experiment. Strains 7I03-H, 7105-H and Chiba-H were isolated from honey associated with cases of infant botulism and Kyoto-F from the feces of a patient (33) In SDS-PAGE, 7I03-H neurotoxin migrated as a position of 154 kDa in the absence of DTT, whose molecular weight was slightly larger than that (146 kDa) of the neurotoxin of strain 62A (Fig. 1A, lanes 1 and 3).…”

“…The first Japanese case of type A infant botulism occurred in 1986 (22). Since then, there have been 7 proven cases of infant botulism, 6 due to type A and one to type C, and an additional 3 type A cases have been diagnosed clinically as infant botulism in this country (23,33). All type A cases had been fed honey before onset of symptoms and type A organism was isolated from the honey ingested in 5 cases.…”