Large scale purification of Clostridium perfringens toxins: a review

Abstract

Clostridium perfringens, a Gram-positive anaerobic bacterium, is widespread in the environment and commonly found in the intestines of animals, including humans. C. perfringens strains are classified into five toxinotypes (A, B, C, D and E) based on the production of four major toxins (±, ², µ, ¹). However the toxins (theta, delta, lambda and enterotoxin) are also synthesized by C. perfringens strain. Many attempts to purify the toxins produced by C. perfringens have been proposed. In this review we discuss the purification methods used to isolate toxins from C. perfringens reported in last four decades.