Prosurvival Pathway Protects From Clostridioides difficile Toxin-Mediated Cell Death

Abstract

There is an urgent need for new nonantibiotic-based treatment strategies for Clostridioides difficile infection. C. difficile toxin B (TcdB) is a virulent factor that is essential for causing disease. Here, we investigated whether a survival-signaling pathway could protect against TcdB. We found significant increase in caspase-3 apoptotic activity in intestinal epithelial cells of mice exposed to TcdB. Subsequently, activation of the MIF-CD74-Akt prosurvival signaling pathway blocked TcdB-induced caspase-3 activity and intestinal epithelial cell death. This brief report provides proof-of-concept that targeting prosurvival pathways may represent a unique antibiotic-independent strategy for protecting against C. difficile toxin-mediated cell death.

Keywords: C difficile; Akt; apoptosis; caspase; cell death; cell survival; toxin.