Sporulation is one of the main survival strategies for some prokaryotic organisms. By engaging in a complex differentiation pathway (sporogenesis), cells can cope with unfavorable conditions in the natural growth cycle and persist in the environment facing extreme conditions. In different stages of their life cycle, sporeformers can sense changes in the environment and they are able to interact with plants, humans, and animals with either beneficial or prejudicial outcomes.

Given the paramount relevance of bacterial spores in different aspects of human activities, the knowledge of factors involved in the life cycle as well as of the many factors determining the interaction between humans and animals will contribute to delineating strategies to control these particular microorganisms in their activity as opportunistic pathogens involved in infectious diseases.

Sporogenesis is a unique differentiation process in prokaryotes. During the formation of spores, constant communication between the mother cell and the forespore delineates the formation of mature spores. Some factors with strong biological activity (e. g. toxins) can be released during sporogenesis.

Once spores are formed, they can persist in the environment for long periods and germinate under appropriate conditions to re-initiate the life cycle. Compounds that trigger germination can be nutrients or, in many instances, host molecules that give the spores the right signal at the right place to leave the dormant status to raise fully active vegetative cells. It is evident that following spore germination the outgrown bacteria can interact with the host´s tissues in an infectious process thus highlighting the relevance of the interaction in different stages of the biological cycle of spore formers.

Noteworthy, their life cycle and chemical composition of the differentiation form are main keys for designing detection and diagnostic methods as well as for finding therapeutic approaches to cope with the harmful effects on the host. In this context, methods that specifically consider their unique features have evolved thus opening promising fields for research.

The study of spore formers as infectious agents has been addressed in many scientific programs. Relevant lessons on their biology, genetics and pathogenic potential have been obtained from representative genera such as Bacillus and Clostridium/Clostridioides. However, many aspects of the interaction between spore formers and the host(s) remain unknown. The present issue aims to bring together recent advances on spore formers as pathogens for humans and animals.

This Research Topic will include Original Research, Perspectives, Mini-Reviews, and Opinion papers on the following aspects of spore-forming pathogenic bacteria :
1. Cell cycle: sporogenesis, germination in vitro-in vivo
2. Detection/diagnostic
3. Virulence factors
4. Immune response
5. Prophylaxis/Therapeutics

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Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

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