Emergence of Novel Type C Botulism Strain in Household Outbreak, Japan

Abstract

In 2021, an outbreak of food poisoning caused by Clostridium botulinum type C occurred in Kumamoto, Japan. Analysis of the isolated strain revealed that it possessed the bont/C gene and was slightly different from the reference bont/C gene. The risk for human infection with this new toxin type may be low.

Keywords

• Botulism
• Clostridium botulinum
• botulinum neurotoxins
• food poisoning
• food safety
• bacteria