Abstract
More than hundreds pathogens of mycobacterium have been identified till now but a minority of these bugs cause diseases in humans. M. simiae, an emerging bacterium that has been discovered recently, commonly recovered from human sputum especially in patients with underlying lung diseases. Most commonly this bacterium is a bystander rather than a true culprit. Such differentiation is critical to avoid unnecessary long term treatment not free of side effects.
Highlights
Different terms are used to define non-tuberculosis mycobacteria [NTM] including atypical mycobarcteria and mycobacteria other than tuberculosis [MOTT]
NTMs are rods shaped bacilli similar to Mycobacterium tuberculosis [MTB]
Differentiation between true M. simiae infection and colonization is critical since treatment of infected cases is recommended for at least one year after negative culture
Summary
Different terms are used to define non-tuberculosis mycobacteria [NTM] including atypical mycobarcteria and mycobacteria other than tuberculosis [MOTT]. NTM, an emerging entity, includes more than 100 species with variable microbiological features, clinical manifestations and significances. M. simiae like other NTM is a ubiquitous organism with huge environmental reservoirs, such as natural and municipal water, soil, aerosols, protozoan, animals, and humans [3]. In 1965, M. simiae was initially isolated from maccacus rhesus monkeys [4]. It was first reported in Israel, Cuba, and south western America and reports from middle east and Asia identified the presence of this emerging specie [2,5]. Data from Australia showed higher incidence in 2005 compared to 1999 [6,7]
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