title: Attempts to revive Mycobacterium tuberculosis from 300-year-old human mummies.
abstract: Environmental persistence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is subject to speculation. However, the reality that infected postmortem tissues can be a danger to pathologists and embalmers has worrisome implications. A few experimental studies have demonstrated the organism's ability to withstand exposure to embalming fluid and formalin. Recently, a failure was reported in an attempt to resuscitate an original isolate of Robert Koch to determine the lifetime of the tubercle bacillus. The present study also considers a historical approach to determine persistence under favorable environmental conditions. It asks whether acid-fast forms observed in tissues of 300-year-old Hungarian mummies can be resuscitated. Finding organisms before the advent of antibiotics and pasteurization may yield valuable genetic information. Using various media modifications, as well as guinea pig inoculation, an attempt was made to culture these tissues for M. tuberculosis. In addition, a resuscitation-promoting factor, known to increase colony counts in high G+C bacteria, was applied to the cultures. Although an occasional PCR-positive sample was detected, no colonies of M. tuberculosis were obtained. Our results may indicate that the life span of the tubercle bacillus is less than a few hundred years, even though in the short run it can survive harsh chemical treatment.
authors.affiliation: Infectious and Other Diseases Research Department, Ethiopian Health and Nutrition Research Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
authors.forename: Eshetu
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lemma
authors.forename: Oren
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Zimhony
authors.forename: Charles L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Greenblatt
authors.forename: Viktoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Koltunov
authors.forename: María Inés
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Zylber
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vernon
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spigelman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006801:Humans; D050296:Microbial Viability; D009106:Mummies / Q000382:microbiology*; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D035423:Thoracic Cavity / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D016207:Cytokines; C113704:resuscitation-promoting factor, bacteria