Enterocyte Purge and Rapid Recovery Is a Resilience Reaction of the Gut Epithelium to Pore-Forming Toxin Attack.

Besides digesting nutrients, the gut protects the host against invasion by pathogens. Enterocytes may be subjected to damage by both microbial and host defensive responses, causing their death. Here, we report a rapid epithelial response that alleviates infection stress and protects the enterocytes from the action of microbial virulence factors.