Abstract
We analyzed eight strains of Clostridium perfringens belonging to distinct Hobb's types for their enterotoxin gene, and of them, we analyzed six strains for C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) production. All strains possessed the enterotoxin gene, but enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed a wide variation in the level of CPE in 24hr sporulation cultures.
This finding suggests that phenotypic determination is essential for the confirmation of enterotoxigenicity of C. perfringens. Flow cytometry (FCM) using enterotoxin-specific monoclonal antibody was applied to identify enterotoxin-producing C. perfringens, especially the sporangia. FCM profiles of sporangia harvested from 6-8hr sporulation cultures in Duncan and Strong (DS) medium showed a positive reaction for CPE. Of six different strains, the higher enterotoxin-producing strains showed higher peak channel numbers under FCM analysis, and this finding was coincident with ELISA results. Preparation of the sporangia was easier and faster than that of the spores.
FCM using monoclonal antibody was found to be applicable to the rapid and specific detection of enterotoxin-producing C. perfringens at an early stage of sporulation.
