AUTHOR=Maikova Anna , Severinov Konstantin , Soutourina Olga 

TITLE=New Insights Into Functions and Possible Applications of Clostridium difficile CRISPR-Cas System

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01740

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2018.01740

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Over the last decades the enteric bacterium <italic>Clostridium difficile</italic> (novel name <italic>Clostridioides difficile</italic>) – has emerged as an important human nosocomial pathogen. It is a leading cause of hospital-acquired diarrhea and represents a major challenge for healthcare providers. Many aspects of <italic>C. difficile</italic> pathogenesis and its evolution remain poorly understood. Efficient defense systems against phages and other genetic elements could have contributed to the success of this enteropathogen in the phage-rich gut communities. Recent studies demonstrated the presence of an active CRISPR (<underline>c</underline>lustered <underline>r</underline>egularly <underline>i</underline>nterspaced <underline>s</underline>hort <underline>p</underline>alindromic <underline>r</underline>epeats)-Cas (CRISPR-associated) subtype I-B system in <italic>C. difficile</italic>. In this mini-review, we will discuss the recent advances in characterization of original features of the <italic>C. difficile</italic> CRISPR-Cas system in laboratory and clinical strains, as well as interesting perspectives for our understanding of this defense system function and regulation in this important enteropathogen. This knowledge will pave the way for the development of promising biotechnological and therapeutic tools in the future. Possible applications for the <italic>C. difficile</italic> strain monitoring and genotyping, as well as for CRISPR-based genome editing and antimicrobials are also discussed.</p>