title: Molecular snapshot of drug-resistant and drug-susceptible Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains circulating in Bulgaria.
abstract: We report results of the first study on the molecular basis of drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains currently circulating in Bulgaria. The study panel consisted of 133 (including 37 drug-resistant) isolates recovered from newly diagnosed, adult pulmonary TB patients from different regions of Bulgaria in 2005--2006. Three types of the rpoB mutations were found in 20 of 27 RIF-resistant isolates; rpoB S531L was the most frequent. Eleven (48%) of 23 INH-resistant isolates had katG S315T mutation. inhA -15C > T mutation was detected in one INH-resistant isolate (that also had katG315 mutation) and three INH-susceptible isolates. A mutation in embB306 was found in 7 of 11 EMB-resistant isolates. Comparison with spoligotyping and 24-VNTR locus typing data suggested that emergence and spread of drug-resistant and MDR-TB in Bulgaria are not associated with any specific spoligotype or MIRU-VNTR genotype.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathogenic Bacteria, The Stephan Angeloff Institute of Microbiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: Violeta
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Valcheva
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mokrousov
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Narvskaya
authors.forename: Nalin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rastogi
authors.forename: Nadya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Markova
mesh_terms: D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002031:Bulgaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D018598:Minisatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D000995:Antitubercular Agents