title: Genomic characterization ofMycobacterium tuberculosislineage 7 and a proposed name: 'Aethiops vetus'.
abstract: Lineage 7 of theMycobacterium tuberculosiscomplex has recently been identified among strains originating from Ethiopia. Using different DNA typing techniques, this study provides additional information on the genetic heterogeneity of five lineage 7 strains collected in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It also confirms the phylogenetic positioning of these strains between the ancient lineage 1 and TbD1-deleted, modern lineages 2, 3 and 4 ofMycobacterium tuberculosis. Four newly identified large sequence polymorphisms characteristic of the Amhara Region lineage 7 strains are described. While lineage 7 strains have been previously identified in the Woldiya area, we show that lineage 7 strains circulate in other parts of the Amhara Region and also among foreign-born individuals from Eritrea and Somalia in The Netherlands. For ease of documenting future identification of these strains in other geographical locations and recognizing the place of origin, we propose to assign lineage 7 strains the lineage name'Aethiops vetus'.
authors.affiliation: 1​Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nebenzahl-Guimaraes
authors.affiliation: 2​Department of Microbiology, Genome Dynamics and Microbial Pathogenesis Group, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.|3​Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Solomon A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Yimer
authors.affiliation: 3​Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Carol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Holm-Hansen
authors.affiliation: 1​Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Beer
authors.affiliation: 4​Unit for Integrated Mycobacterial Pathogenomics, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Brosch
authors.affiliation: 1​Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands.|5​Department of Medical Microbiology, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Dick
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: van Soolingen
mesh_terms: D019017:Eritrea / Q000453:epidemiology; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D016680:Genome, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D010802:Phylogeny; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D012998:Somalia / Q000453:epidemiology; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*
keywords: Ethiopia; Tuberculosis; phylogenetic lineage