NanI Sialidase Is an Important Contributor to Clostridium perfringens Type F Strain F4969 Intestinal Colonization in Mice

Clostridium perfringens type F (formerly enterotoxigenic C. perfringens type A) strains produce an enterotoxin (CPE) to cause acute cases of food poisoning and chronic nonfoodborne human gastrointestinal diseases (NFD), e.g., antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). NFD strains also produce NanI sialidase, an extracellular enzyme that releases sialic acids from sialyated host macromolecules.