The role of extracellular structures in Clostridioides difficile biofilm formation.

C. difficile infection (CDI) is a costly and increasing burden on the healthcare systems of many developed countries due to the high rates of nosocomial infections. Despite the availability of several antibiotics with high response rates, effective treatment is hampered by recurrent infections.

Flagellin is essential for initial attachment to mucosal surfaces by .

is one of the leading causes of hospital-acquired infections worldwide and presents challenges in treatment due to recurrent gastrointestinal disease after treatment with antimicrobials. The mechanisms by which colonizes the gut represent a key gap in knowledge, including its association with host cells and mucosa. Our results show the importance of flagellin for specific adhesion to mucosal hydrogels and can help to explain prior observations of adhesive defects in flagellin and pilin mutants.

Flagellin is essential for initial attachment to mucosal surfaces .

Mucins are glycoproteins which can be found in host cell membranes and as a gelatinous surface formed from secreted mucins. Mucosal surfaces in mammals form a barrier to invasive microbes, particularly bacteria, but are a point of attachment for others. is anaerobic bacterium which colonizes the mammalian GI tract and is a common cause of acute GI inflammation leading to a variety of negative outcomes.

Plying of speedboats along canals in the city of Kolkata, India, to prevent mosquito breeding.

Background: Two long sewerage canals in the city of Kolkata, India were heavily infested with larvae, pupae and egg rafts of the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus. Although the burden of bancroftian filariasis and other diseases transmitted by C. quinquefasciatus in the city is practically zero, the night-biting mosquitoes are a great nuisance to residents living alongside the canals.