Oligosaccharide Sequences Attached to an Inert Support (SYNSORB) as Potential Therapy for Antibiotic-Associated Diarrhea and Pseudomembranous Colitis

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 169; no. 6; pp. 1291 - 1296
• Main Authors: Heerze, Louis D., Kelm, Marjorie A., Talbot, James A., Armstrong, Glen D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01-06-1994; University of Chicago Press
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - adverse effects; Antibiotics; Bacterial diseases; Bacterial diseases of the digestive system and abdomen; Bacterial Toxins; Biological and medical sciences; Carbohydrate Sequence; CHO Cells; Clostridium difficile; Colitis; Cricetinae; Diarrhea; Diarrhea - chemically induced; Diarrhea - microbiology; Diarrhea - therapy; Enterocolitis, Pseudomembranous - therapy; Enterotoxins - antagonists & inhibitors; Erythrocytes; Feces; Hemagglutination; Human bacterial diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; Intestines; Major Articles; Medical sciences; Molecular Sequence Data; Oligosaccharides; Oligosaccharides - pharmacology; Oligosaccharides - therapeutic use; Rabbits; Receptors; Silicon Dioxide; Toxins; Oligosaccharide; Clostridium difficile; Clostridiales; Diarrhea; Immobilization; Silica; Biological activity; Microbial origin; Clostridiaceae; Covalent bond; Digestive diseases; Bacteria; Intestinal disease; Pseudomembranous colitis; Feces; Neutralization
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1093/infdis/169.6.1291

Toxin A produced by Clostridium difficile, the causative agent of pseudomembranous colitis and antibiotic-associated diarrhea, was shown to bind to synthetic oligosaccharide sequences attached to an inert support (SYNSORB). The oligosaccharide sequences that bind to toxin A were related to sequences previously identified as potential receptors for the toxin. Various SYNSORBs containing a variety of oligosaccharides were examined for their potential to neutralize toxin A activity from toxin-containing solutions as well as clinical stool samples from patients with either pseudomembranous colitisor antibiotic-associated diarrhea. The results from neutralization experiments suggest SYNSORB can effectively neutralize toxin A activity from stool samples and thus could serve as a potential therapy for C. difficile-associated diarrhea.