Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 11, 2025
High-throughput Siderophore Screening from Environmental Samples: Plant Tissues, Bulk Soils, and Rhizosphere Soils
Published on: February 9, 2019
Clostridioides difficile utilizes siderophores as an iron source and FhuDBGC contributes to ferrichrome uptake
Jessica L Hastie1, Hannah L Carmichael1, Bailey M Werner1
1Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Office of Vaccines Research and Review, Division of Bacterial Parasitic and Allergenic Products, Laboratory of Mucosal Pathogens and Cellular Immunology, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA.
Importance:
This study is the first example of C. difficile growing with siderophores as the sole iron source and describes the characterization of the ferric hydroxamate uptake ABC transporter (FhuDBGC). This transporter shows specificity to the siderophore ferrichrome. While not required for pathogenesis, this transporter highlights the redundancy in iron acquisition mechanisms that C. difficile uses to compete for iron during an infection.
