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Induction and Purification of C. difficile Phage Tail-Like Particles

Protocol
Part of the Methods in Molecular Biology book series (MIMB, volume 1476)

Abstract

Due to the inherent limitations of conventional antibiotics for the treatment of C. difficile infection (CDI), there is a growing interest in the development of alternative treatment strategies. Both bacteriophages and R-type bacteriocins, also known as phage tail-like particles (PTLPs), show promise as potential antibacterial alternatives for treating CDI. Similar to bacteriophages, but lacking a viral capsid and genome, PTLPs remain capable of killing target bacteria. Here we describe our experience in the induction and purification of C. difficile PTLPs. These methods have been optimized to allow production of concentrated, non-contractile, and non-aggregated samples for both sensitivity testing and structural electron microscopy studies.

Key words

Clostridium difficile Phage tail-like particles Induction Purification Microscopy 

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Surgery, Division of Colorectal SurgeryThe Pennsylvania State University College of MedicineHersheyUSA
  2. 2.Department of MedicineThe Pennsylvania State University College of MedicineHersheyUSA
  3. 3.Department of Microbiology & ImmunologyThe Pennsylvania State University College of MedicineHersheyUSA
  4. 4.Department of Neural and Behavioral SciencesThe Pennsylvania State University College of MedicineHersheyUSA

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