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Escherichia coli STb Enterotoxin: A Multifaceted Molecule

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Book cover Microbial Toxins

Part of the book series: Toxinology ((TOXI))

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Abstract

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) produce heat-labile and heat-stable toxins. These toxins are active on the epithelial cells of the small intestine of man and animals affecting the fluid homeostasis. One of the heat-stable toxins enterotoxin b (STb) is responsible for secretory diarrhea in animals and more specifically in pigs. Recent studies have provided information on the nature of its receptor and the structure-function of the toxin. The toxin was shown to form oligomers and this process seems indispensable for toxicity expression. As observed with in vitro models and cells in culture, diverse activities were determined for STb and some or all of these may account for the secretion resulting from the activity of this toxin. The next step will be to determine quantitatively how important each of these activities is on fluid secretion. The relative importance of STb compared to other ETEC toxins has been clarified in recent years. As STb is now recognized as a major player in post-weaning diarrhea in pigs, the focus has been on ways to prevent its toxicity. For example, vaccines composed of multivalent toxin molecules were designed, and preliminary results indicate that it could represent a reliable way to protect from ETEC intoxication. As described for many other bacterial toxins, in the near future, STb could be utilized as a tool to decipher cellular physiological process.

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Acknowledgments

J.D.D. is the recipient of a Discovery Grant from the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (139070). The author thanks Mrs. Jacinthe Lachance for the artwork.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology and Microbiology, Faculté de médecine vétérinaire, Université de Montréal, 3200 rue Sicotte, Saint-Hyacinthe, J2S 7C6, QC, Canada

    J. Daniel Dubreuil

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  1. J. Daniel Dubreuil
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Correspondence to J. Daniel Dubreuil .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    P. Gopalakrishnakone

  2. Biology Department, Wilson College , Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, USA

    Brad Stiles

  3. Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine and Instituto Clodomiro Picado, Faculty of Microbiology, University of Costa Rica , San Pedro de Montes de Oca, Costa Rica

    Alberto Alape-Girón

  4. Département de pathologie et microbiologie, Faculté de médecine vétérinaire, Université de Montréal , Saint-Hyacinthe, Canada

    J. Daniel Dubreuil

  5. College of Pharmacy, Roseman University of Health Sciences, Henderson, Nevada, USA

    Manas Mandal

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Dubreuil, J.D. (2016). Escherichia coli STb Enterotoxin: A Multifaceted Molecule. In: Gopalakrishnakone, P., Stiles, B., Alape-Girón, A., Dubreuil, J., Mandal, M. (eds) Microbial Toxins. Toxinology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6725-6_21-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6725-6_21-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-94-007-6725-6

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