Deciphering the virulence factors of the opportunistic pathogenMycobacterium colombiense.
Mycobacterium aviumcomplex (MAC) contains clinically important nontuberculous mycobacteria worldwide and is the second largest medical complex in theMycobacteriumgenus after theMycobacterium tuberculosiscomplex. MAC comprises several species that are closely phylogenetically related but diverse regarding their host preference, course of disease, virulence and immune response. In this study we provided immunologic and virulence-related insights into theM. colombiensegenome as a model of an opportunistic pathogen in the MAC. By using bioinformatic tools we found thatM. colombiensehas deletions in the genes involved in p-HBA/PDIM/PGL, PLC, SL-1 and HspX production, and loss of the ESX-1 locus. This information not only sheds light on our understanding the virulence mechanisms used by opportunistic MAC pathogens but also has great potential for the designing of species-specific diagnostic tools.
Microbiology Department, School of Medicine, National University of Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia; Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany.
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Gonzalez-Perez
Microbiology Department, School of Medicine, National University of Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.
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MI
Murcia
Microbiology Department, School of Medicine, National University of Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.
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C
Parra-Lopez
Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
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J
Blom
Microbiology Department, School of Medicine, National University of Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia; Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany.
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A
Tauch
Genomic islands; Mycobacterium colombiense; nontuberculous mycobacteria; tuberculosis; virulence factors