Department of Microbiology, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.
FEMS Microbiol Lett. 2014 Mar;352(2):140-9. doi: 10.1111/1574-6968.12367. Epub 2014 Jan 7.
Clostridium difficile is the leading cause of bacterial antibiotic-associated diarrhoea in hospitals in the developed world. Despite this notoriety, the complex mechanisms employed by this pathogen to overcome innate host defences and induce fulminant disease are poorly understood. Various animal models have been used extensively for C. difficile research to study disease pathogenesis. Until recently, the most commonly used C. difficile disease model has utilised hamsters; however, mouse and pig models have now been developed that unravel different aspects of C. difficile pathology. This review summarises key aspects of the small animal models currently used in C. difficile studies with a specific focus on major differences between them. Furthermore, this review highlights the advantages and disadvantages of each model and illustrates that careful consideration is required when selecting models for use in C. difficile research.
艰难梭菌是发达国家医院中导致细菌性抗生素相关性腹泻的主要原因。尽管恶名昭彰，但这种病原体克服先天宿主防御并引发暴发性疾病的复杂机制仍未得到充分理解。已经广泛使用各种动物模型来研究艰难梭菌，以研究疾病的发病机制。直到最近，最常用的艰难梭菌疾病模型一直是仓鼠；然而，现在已经开发出了小鼠和猪模型，这些模型揭示了艰难梭菌病理学的不同方面。本文综述了目前在艰难梭菌研究中使用的小动物模型的主要方面，并特别关注它们之间的主要差异。此外，本文还强调了每种模型的优缺点，并说明了在选择用于艰难梭菌研究的模型时需要仔细考虑。
