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Clostridium tetani

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Clostridium tetani

Clostridium tetani with characteristic 'tennis racket' appearance.

Scientific classification

Kingdom:

Bacteria

Phylum:

Firmicutes

Class:

Clostridia

Order:

Clostridiales

Family:

Clostridiaceae

Genus:

Clostridium

Species:

C. tetani

Binomial name

Clostridium tetani

Flgge, 1881

Clostridium tetani is a rod-shaped, anaerobic bacterium of the genus Clostridium. Like otherClostridium species, it is Gram-positive, and its appearance on a gram stain resembles tennis rackets or drumsticks.
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C. tetani is found

as spores in soil or in the gastrointestinal tract of animals. C. tetani produces a potent biological toxin, tetanospasmin, and is the causative agent of tetanus, a disease characterized by painful muscular spasms that can lead to respiratory failure and, in up to 40% of cases, death.
Contents
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1 History 2 Characteristics 3 Vaccination 4 Toxicity

4.1 Toxin action

5 References

5.1 Further reading

6 External links

[edit]History Tetanus was known to ancient people, who recognized the relationship between wounds and fatal muscle spasms. In 1884, Arthur Nicolaier isolated the strychnine-like toxin of tetanus from free-living, anaerobic soil bacteria. The etiology of the disease was further elucidated in 1890 byAntonie Carl and Giorgio Rattone, who demonstrated the transmissibility of tetanus for the first time. They produced tetanus in rabbits by injecting their sciatic nerve with pus from a fatal human tetanus case in that same year. In 1889, C. tetani was isolated from a human victim, byKitasato Shibasabur, who later showed that the organism could produce disease when injected into animals, and that the toxin could be neutralized by specific antibodies. In 1897,Edmond Nocard showed that tetanus antitoxin induced passive immunity in humans, and could be used for prophylaxis and treatment. Tetanus toxoid vaccine was developed by P. Descombey in 1924, and was widely used to prevent tetanus induced by battle wounds during World War II.
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[edit]Characteristics C. tetani is a rod-shaped, obligate anaerobe which stains Gram positive in fresh cultures; established cultures may stain Gram negative. During vegetative growth, the organism cannot survive in the presence of oxygen, is heatsensitive and exhibits flagellar motility. As the bacterium matures, it develops a terminal spore, which gives the
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organism its characteristic appearance. C. tetani spores are extremely hardy as they are resistant to heat and most antiseptics.
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The spores are distributed widely in manure-treated soils and can also be found on human skin
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and in contaminated heroin. [edit]Vaccination

Tetanus can be prevented through the highly effective tetanus vaccine, which is a tetanus toxin inactivated with formaldehyde to beimmunogenic but not pathogenic. The vaccine can be formulated as simple or adsorbed tetanus vaccine, combined tetanus and killed poliovaccine, or the older (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis) (DPT) vaccine. Side effects are rare, but if they do occur, include fever, pain at the injection site, unexplained crying in infants, and irritability in older children or adults. Severe reactions are extremely rare and includeanaphylaxis, seizures and encephalopathy. These events are thought to occur less if only the tetanusdiphtheria component of the vaccine is given.
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All infants are recommended to receive the vaccine at 2, 4,

6, and 15 months of age. A fifth booster dose should be given at 46 years of age. After that, it should be given every 10 years. However, if a bite, scratch, or puncture occurs more than five years after the last dose of vaccine, the patients should receive another dose of vaccine. [edit]Toxicity C. tetani usually enters a host through a wound to the skin, then it replicates. Once an infection is established, C. tetani produces two exotoxins, tetanolysin and tetanospasmin. Eleven strains of C. tetani have been identified, which differ primarily in flagellar antigens and in their ability to produce tetanospasmin. The genes for toxin production are encoded on a plasmid which is present in all toxigenic strains, and all strains that are capable of producing toxin produce identical toxins.
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Tetanolysin serves no known benefit to C. tetani. Tetanospasmin is a neurotoxin that causes the clinical manifestations of tetanus. Tetanus toxin is generated in living bacteria, and is released when the bacteria lyse, such as during spore germination or vegetative growth. A minimal amount of spore germination and vegetative cell growth are required for toxin production.
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On the basis of weight, tetanospasmin is one of the most potent toxins known (based on tests conducted on mice). The estimated minimum human lethal dose is 2.5 nanograms per kilogram of body weight, or 175 nanograms in a 70 kg (154 lb) human.
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The only toxins more lethal to mice are botulinum toxin, produced by close

relative Clostridium botulinum and the exotoxin produced by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, the causative agent of diphtheria. It should be noted, however, that humans and other animals may react differently to specific toxins when compared to mice, and that the overall lethality of a specific toxin likely varies between different animals. Tetanospasmin is a zinc-dependent metalloproteinase that is structurally similar to botulinum toxin, but with different effects. C. tetanisynthesizes tetanospasmin as a single 150kDa polypeptide progenitor toxin that is then cleaved by a protease into two fragments; fragment A (a 50kDa "light chain") and fragment B (a 100 kDa "heavy chain") which

remain connected via a disulfide bridge. Cleavage of the progenitor toxin into A and B fragments can be induced artificially by trypsin. [edit]Toxin
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action

Tetanospasmin released in the wound is absorbed into the circulation and reaches the ends of motor neurons all over the body. The toxin acts at several sites within the central nervous system, including nerve terminals, the spinal cord, and brain, and within the sympathetic nervous system. By binding to peripheral motor neuron terminals, the toxin enters the nerve axons, and is transported across synaptic junctions to the nerve-cell body in the brain stem and spinal cord by retrograde intraneuronal transport, until it reaches the central nervous system, where it rapidly binds to gangliosides at the presynaptic membrane of inhibitory motor nerve endings.
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The clinical manifestations of tetanus are caused when tetanus toxin blocks inhibitory impulses, by interfering with the release ofneurotransmitters, including glycine and gamma-aminobutyric acid. These inhibitory neurotransmitters inhibit the alpha motor neurons. With diminished inhibition, the resting firing rate of the alpha motor neuron increases, producing rigidity, unopposed muscle contraction and spasm. Characteristic features are risus sardonicus (a rigid smile), trismus (commonly known as "lock-jaw"), and opisthotonus (rigid, arched back). Seizures may occur, and the autonomic nervous system may also be affected. Tetanospasmin appears to prevent the release of neurotransmitters by selectively cleaving a component of synaptic vesicles called synaptobrevin II.
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Loss of inhibition

also affects preganglionic sympathetic neurons in the lateral gray matter of the spinal cord and produces sympathetic hyperactivity and high circulatingcatecholamine levels. Hypertension and tachycardia alternating with hypotension and bradycardia may develop.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clostridium_tetani

Clostridium Tetani Facts


By Shelley Moore, eHow Contributor

http://www.ehow.com/about_5444959_clostridium-tetani.html
Clostridium tetani is a disease-causing bacterium primarily found in soil and in animal intestinal tracts, and thus in animal feces. Eleven strains have been identified, and all produce an identical lethal neurotoxin. An infection with this bacteria causes a central nervous system disorder called tetanus, which is usually fatal unless treated quickly.

Toxicity
Clostridium tetani is one of the most poisonous biological substances known. It is second only in toxicity to another bacterium in the same genus, Clostridium botulinum, which causes botulism. Both of these bacteria are neurotoxins that enter nerve cells and block neurotransmitters. A very tiny amount of these substances can cause severe muscle disorders and respiratory complications that result in death.

Features

The Clostridium tetani bacterium is anaerobic, meaning its actively growing (vegetative) form cannot live when exposed to oxygen. However, spores produced by the bacterium can survive for a long time even when exposed to air. Like all bacteria, Clostridium tetani are single celled. The bacterium is rod shaped in the vegetative form and shaped like a drumstick in the spore form.

Puncture Wounds
People can become infected with Clostridium tetani through a puncture wound, such as a wound that occurs from stepping on a nail, being bitten by a dog or being stabbed with a sharp object. A puncture wound allows anaerobic bacteria to survive because the bacteria are deposited deep into the skin and far from oxygen. Since the wound is obvious when it occurs, an individual knowing the risks of tetanus likely seeks treatment and prevents the disease from developing.

Other Infections
People also can become infected with Clostridium tetani by spores entering the body through a cut, burn or other sore. In these cases, the infection may not be noticed until tetanus symptoms occur. This usually occurs anywhere from a few days to a few weeks after infection, although in rare cases it can take much longer.

Tetanus
Clostridium tetani infection causes spastic paralysis, or painful tightening of the muscles. It is commonly called "lockjaw" because it leads to the patient being unable to open his mouth or swallow. Initial symptoms are mild muscle contractions at the location of the wound. Without treatment, spasms become worse and spread throughout the body, including the spine and brain. Tetanus results in death when the respiratory system becomes paralyzed.

Prevention and Treatment


Several vaccines are available to prevent tetanus and are typically provided in early childhood in combination with the vaccines for diphtheria and pertussis, in an injection called DTP. A booster shot is recommended every seven to ten years. Treatment for tetanus includes antibiotics and an antitoxin. Rapid treatment is essential or the disease can be fatal. Although only about 100 cases occur in the United States each year, according to the World Health Organization, about 400,000 cases are reported worldwide each year. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) notes that in 2004, 128,000 newborn babies died of infection from Clostridium tetani in cases involving nonsterile delivery and umbilical cord cutting. Most of these incidents occurred in Africa and Asia.

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