Date of Award
8-2022
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Microbiology
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. Anna Seekatz
Committee Member
Dr. Kristi Whitehead
Committee Member
Dr. David Karig
Abstract
Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are products of bacterial fermentation that help maintain important gut functions such as the intestinal barrier, signaling, and immune homeostasis. The main SCFAs acetate, propionate, and butyrate have demonstrated beneficial effects for the host, including importance in combatting infections caused by pathogens such as Clostridioides difficile. C. difficile infection (CDI) is a public health concern and causes 30,000 deaths each year mainly due to the overuse of antibiotics. Despite the potential role of SCFAs in mitigating C. difficile infection, their direct effect on C. difficile remains unclear. Through a set of in-vitro experiments, we investigated how SCFAs influence C. difficile growth, sporulation, and toxin production directly. Our data shows that butyrate decreased growth but increased sporulation and toxin production in C. difficile strain 630. RNA-Seq analysis showed that butyrate influenced the expression of cellular processes/signaling, information storage/processing, cell division and chromosome partitioning, and amino acid metabolism genes/pathways. Collectively, these data suggest that butyrate influences C. difficile growth and virulence by modifying its metabolism.
Recommended Citation
Baldassare, Michelle, "The Effects of Short Chain Fatty Acids on Clostridioides Difficile Growth, Sporulation, and Toxin Production" (2022). All Theses. 3855.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/3855