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Updated: Feb 16, 2026

Enrichment and Detection of Clostridium perfringens Toxinotypes in Retail Food Samples
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Identification and structural characterization of anthrax toxin receptor 2 as the Clostridium perfringens NetF

Chang Wang1,2, Filippo Cattalani2,3, Ioan Iacovache1

  • 1Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.

Nature Communications
|February 14, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Clostridium perfringens necrotizing enteritis toxin F (NetF) binds to ANTXR2, the same receptor as anthrax toxin. This toxin uses a unique lateral binding mechanism to form pores, unlike anthrax toxin's apical binding.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Structural Biology
  • Toxicology

Background:

  • Hemolysin β-pore-forming toxins (βPFTs) are critical virulence factors in Clostridium perfringens, causing severe diseases.
  • The precise mechanisms by which Clostridium βPFTs target specific host cells are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify the cellular receptor for Clostridium perfringens necrotizing enteritis toxin F (NetF).
  • To elucidate the structural basis of NetF-receptor interaction and pore formation.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized cryo-electron microscopy to determine the structures of NetF pre-pore and pore complexes.
  • Investigated the interaction between NetF and the extracellular domain of its identified receptor, ANTXR2.

Main Results:

  • Identified ANTXR2 as the cellular receptor for NetF, the same receptor targeted by anthrax toxin.
  • Determined that NetF binds laterally to ANTXR2, engaging both von Willebrand A and Ig-like domains, distinct from anthrax toxin's apical binding.
  • Structural analysis revealed how NetF's lateral interaction facilitates membrane lipid contact and pore formation.

Conclusions:

  • NetF employs a novel lateral binding mechanism to ANTXR2 for host cell invasion.
  • Findings provide crucial insights into βPFT-receptor recognition and bacterial toxin mechanisms.
  • Advances understanding of how pathogenic bacteria breach host defenses using toxins.

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