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The spore is Clostridium difficile's secret weapon, accounting for its tenacity as a pathogen, its longevity on inanimate surfaces, and its ability to cause multiple relapses. None of the current treatments for C. difficile–associated disease (CDAD) specifically address this aspect of infection. Now, researchers have inaugurated a paradigm shift with CamSA, a bile salt derivative that is a strong inhibitor of C. difficile spore germination.
Antibiotic-treated mice were administered CamSA in various doses before, during, or after challenges with oral C. difficile spores. Within 48 hours of receiving the spores, all untreated control mice developed signs of severe CDAD. However, mice who received CamSA were protected in a dose-dependent fashio…