Molecular characterisation of hypervirulence and the infectious cycle in Clostridium difficile.

Clostridium difficile is a major cause of disease in animals and humans and is the major cause of hospital-acquired diarrhoea worldwide. Strains of increased virulence have recently emerged resulting in worldwide epidemics, however, very little is known about the infection process that results in colonisation and disease transmission by this bacterium. This project will analyse the virulence properties of epidemic C. difficile isolates and their infection cycle and will make a significant contribution to our understanding of how these strains cause enteric disease. Rational preventative and treatment regimes can then be designed to prevent C. difficile outbreaks in Australia.