All Topics  
Enterotoxin

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Enterotoxin
 
 
  Topics Enterotoxin Topic Home

An enterotoxin (not to be confused with endotoxin
Endotoxin

Endotoxins are toxins associated with certain bacteria. Classically, an "endotoxin" is a toxin which, unlike an "exotoxin", is not secreted in soluble form by live bacteria, but is a structural component in the bacteria which is released mainly when bacteria are lysis....
) is a protein
Protein

Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
 toxin
Toxin

A toxin is a poisonous substance produced by living cells or organisms. For a toxic substance not produced by living organisms, "toxicant" is the more appropriate term, and "toxics" is an acceptable plural....
 released by a microorganism
Microorganism

A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is microscopic . The study of microorganisms is called microbiology, a subject that began with Anton van Leeuwenhoek's discovery of microorganisms in 1675, using a microscope of his own design....
 in the intestine
Intestine

In anatomy, the intestine is the segment of the Gastrointestinal tract extending from the stomach to the anus and, in humans and other mammals, consists of two segments, the small intestine and the large intestine....
.

Enterotoxins are frequently cytotoxic and kill cells by altering the permeability
Semipermeable membrane

A semipermeable membrane, also termed a selectively-permeable membrane, a partially-permeable membrane or a differentially-permeable membrane, is a membrane that will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by diffusion and occasionally specialized "facilitated diffusion." The rate of passage depends on the press...
 of the epithelial cells of the intestinal wall. They are mostly pore forming toxins
Pore forming toxins

Pore-forming toxins are protein toxins, typically, produced by bacteria, such as Clostridium septicum and Staphylococcus aureus. They are frequently cytotoxic as they create unregulated Ion channel in the cell membrane of targeted cells....
, secreted by bacteria, that assemble to form pores in cell membranes. This causes the cells to die.








Discussion
Ask a question about 'Enterotoxin'
Start a new discussion about 'Enterotoxin'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


An enterotoxin (not to be confused with endotoxin
Endotoxin

Endotoxins are toxins associated with certain bacteria. Classically, an "endotoxin" is a toxin which, unlike an "exotoxin", is not secreted in soluble form by live bacteria, but is a structural component in the bacteria which is released mainly when bacteria are lysis....
) is a protein
Protein

Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
 toxin
Toxin

A toxin is a poisonous substance produced by living cells or organisms. For a toxic substance not produced by living organisms, "toxicant" is the more appropriate term, and "toxics" is an acceptable plural....
 released by a microorganism
Microorganism

A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is microscopic . The study of microorganisms is called microbiology, a subject that began with Anton van Leeuwenhoek's discovery of microorganisms in 1675, using a microscope of his own design....
 in the intestine
Intestine

In anatomy, the intestine is the segment of the Gastrointestinal tract extending from the stomach to the anus and, in humans and other mammals, consists of two segments, the small intestine and the large intestine....
.

Enterotoxins are frequently cytotoxic and kill cells by altering the permeability
Semipermeable membrane

A semipermeable membrane, also termed a selectively-permeable membrane, a partially-permeable membrane or a differentially-permeable membrane, is a membrane that will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by diffusion and occasionally specialized "facilitated diffusion." The rate of passage depends on the press...
 of the epithelial cells of the intestinal wall. They are mostly pore forming toxins
Pore forming toxins

Pore-forming toxins are protein toxins, typically, produced by bacteria, such as Clostridium septicum and Staphylococcus aureus. They are frequently cytotoxic as they create unregulated Ion channel in the cell membrane of targeted cells....
, secreted by bacteria, that assemble to form pores in cell membranes. This causes the cells to die.

Clinical significance

The death of cells that form the barrier between the intestinal lumen
Lumen (anatomy)

A lumen in biology is the inside space of a tubular structure, such as an artery or intestine. By extension, a lumen can also be the inside space of a cellular component or structure, such as the endoplasmic reticulum....
 and the surrounding tissue causes interstitial fluid
Interstitial fluid

Interstitial fluid is a solution which bathes and surrounds the cells of multicellular animals. It is the main component of the extracellular fluid, which also includes Blood plasma and transcellular fluid....
, composed of water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 and electrolytes to leak into the intestinal tract, causing diarrhea
Diarrhea

In medicine, diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea , is characterized by frequent loose or liquid bowel movements. The spelling of "diarrhea" is an appropriation of the Greek "diarrhoia" meaning "a flowing through." ....
.

Organisms secreting enterotoxins

Examples of organisms secreting enterotoxins are:

Bacterial

  • Escherichia coli O157:H7
    Escherichia coli O157:H7

    Escherichia coli O157:H7 is an enterohemorrhagic strain of the Bacteria Escherichia coli and a cause of foodborne illness. Infection often leads to bloody diarrhea, and occasionally to kidney failure, especially in young children and elderly people....
  • Clostridium perfringens
    Clostridium perfringens

    Clostridium perfringens is a Gram-positive, rod-shaped, anaerobic bacterium, Endospore bacterium of the genus Clostridium. C. perfringens is ubiquitous in nature and can be found as a normal component of decaying vegetation, marine sediment, the Intestine of humans and other vertebrates, insects, and soil....
     (Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin
    Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin

    Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin is a toxin produced by Clostridium perfringens.There is evidence that CLDN3 and CLDN4 are receptors....
    )
  • Vibrio cholerae
    Vibrio cholerae

    Vibrio cholerae is a motile gram negative curved-rod shaped bacterium with a polar flagellum that causes cholera in humans. V. cholerae and other species of the genus Vibrio belong to the gamma subdivision of the Proteobacteria....
     (Cholera toxin
    Cholera toxin

    Cholera toxin is a protein complex secreted by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. CTX is responsible for the harmful effects of cholera infection....
    )
  • Staphylococcus aureus
    Staphylococcus aureus

    Staphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of staph infections. It is a spherical Bacteria, frequently found in the nose and skin of a person....
     (Staphylococcal Enterotoxin B
    Staphylococcal Enterotoxin B

    Staphylococcal enterotoxin B is the toxin commonly associated with food poisoning.It is produced by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, and is known for causing acute vomiting and diarrhoea after hours after ingesting food stuff that has undergone temperature abuse....
    )
  • Yersinia enterocolitica
    Yersinia enterocolitica

    Yersinia enterocolitica is a species of gram-negative Coccobacillus bacterium, belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae. Primarily a Zoonosis disease , animals that recover frequently become asymptomatic carriers of the disease....
  • Shigella dysenteriae
    Shigella dysenteriae

    Shigella dysenteriae is a species of the rod-shaped bacterial genus Shigella. Shigella can cause shigellosis . Shigellae are Gram-negative, Endospore, Facultative anaerobic organism, Motility bacteria....
     (Shiga toxin
    Shiga toxin

    Shiga toxins are a family of related exotoxins with two major groups, Stx1 and Stx2, whose genes are considered to be part of the genome of lambdoid prophages....
    )


Viral

  • Rotavirus
    Rotavirus

    Rotavirus is a genus of double-stranded RNA virus in the family Reoviridae. It is the leading single cause of Diarrhea among infants and young children....
     (NSP4
    NSP4 (rotavirus)

    The rotavirus nonstructural protein NSP4 was the first viral enterotoxin discovered. It induces diarrhea and causes Ca2+-dependent transepithelial secretion....
    )


See also

  • Endotoxin
    Endotoxin

    Endotoxins are toxins associated with certain bacteria. Classically, an "endotoxin" is a toxin which, unlike an "exotoxin", is not secreted in soluble form by live bacteria, but is a structural component in the bacteria which is released mainly when bacteria are lysis....
  • Exotoxin
    Exotoxin

    An exotoxin is a toxin excreted by a microrganism, including bacterium, fungi, algae, and protozoa. An exotoxin can cause damage to the host by destroying cells or disrupting normal cellular metabolism....