title: Mycobacterium marinum.
abstract: Mycobacterium marinum is a well-known pathogenic mycobacterium for skin and soft tissue infections and is associated with fishes and water. Among nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), it is the leading cause of extrarespiratory human infections worldwide. In addition, there is a specific scientific interest in M. marinum because of its genetic relatedness to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and because experimental infection of M. marinum in fishes mimics tuberculosis pathogenesis. Microbiological characteristics include the fact that it grows in 7 to 14 days with photochromogenic colonies and is difficult to differentiate from Mycobacterium ulcerans and other mycolactone-producing NTM on a molecular basis. The diagnosis is highly suspected by the mode of infection, which is related to the hobby of fishkeeping, professional handling of marine shells, or swimming in nonchlorinated pools. Clinics distinguished skin and soft tissue lesions (typically sporotrichoid or subacute hand nodules) and lesions disseminated to joint and bone, often related with the local use of corticosteroids. In clinical microbiology, microscopy and culture are often negative because growth requires low temperature (30°C) and several weeks to succeed in primary cultivation. The treatment is not standardized, and no randomized control trials have been done. Therapy is a combination of surgery and antimicrobial agents such as cyclines and rifampin, with successful outcome in most of the skin diseases but less frequently in deep tissue infections. Prevention can be useful with hand protection recommendations for professionals and all persons manipulating fishes or fish tank water and use of alcohol disinfection after contact.
authors.affiliation: Centre National de Référence des mycobactéries et résistance des Mycobactéries aux antituberculeux.|Sorbonne Université, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, AP-HP Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière.|Centre d'Immunologie et des Maladies Infectieuses, Team 13, INSERM U1135, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aubry
authors.affiliation: Centre National de Référence des mycobactéries et résistance des Mycobactéries aux antituberculeux.|Laboratoire de Bactériologie, AP-HP Hôpital Lariboisière.|Université Paris Diderot, IAME UMR 1137 Inserm, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Faiza
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mougari
authors.affiliation: Centre National de Référence des mycobactéries et résistance des Mycobactéries aux antituberculeux.|Sorbonne Université, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, AP-HP Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière.|Centre d'Immunologie et des Maladies Infectieuses, Team 13, INSERM U1135, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Reibel
authors.affiliation: Centre National de Référence des mycobactéries et résistance des Mycobactéries aux antituberculeux.|Laboratoire de Bactériologie, AP-HP Hôpital Lariboisière.|Université Paris Diderot, IAME UMR 1137 Inserm, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cambau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D017753:Ecosystem; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D005399:Fishes / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D009165:Mycobacterium Infections, Nontuberculous / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary; D019910:Mycobacterium marinum / Q000502:physiology*; D017192:Skin Diseases, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology / Q000601:surgery; D014871:Water Microbiology