Abstract
Smooth tubercle bacilli (STB) including “Mycobacterium canettii” are members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), which cause non-contagious tuberculosis in human. This group comprises <100 isolates characterized by smooth colonies and cordless organisms. Most STB isolates have been obtained from patients exposed to the Republic of Djibouti but seven isolates, including the three seminal ones obtained by Georges Canetti between 1968 and 1970, were recovered from patients in France, Madagascar, Sub-Sahara East Africa, and French Polynesia. STB form a genetically heterogeneous group of MTBC organisms with large 4.48 ± 0.05 Mb genomes, which may link Mycobacterium kansasii to MTBC organisms. Lack of inter-human transmission suggested a yet unknown environmental reservoir. Clinical data indicate a respiratory tract route of contamination and the digestive tract as an alternative route of contamination. Further epidemiological and clinical studies are warranted to elucidate areas of uncertainty regarding these unusual mycobacteria and the tuberculosis they cause.
Highlights
In 2013, 9 million people developed tuberculosis (TB) and 1.5 million people infected with TB died [1]
The first three smooth tubercle bacilli” (STB) isolates made by Georges Canetti in 1968–1970 [6] were further named “Mycobacterium canettii” following the isolation of an additional STB isolate from a tuberculous lymph node in a Somali child [7]
With
Summary
In 2013, 9 million people developed tuberculosis (TB) and 1.5 million people infected with TB died [1]. The vast majority of cases were caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis stricto sensu, a cordforming organism exhibiting rough colonies [2,3,4] while a few cordless isolates, referred as “smooth tubercle bacilli” (STB) were reported to form smooth colonies [5]. Reports of STB-infected mesenteric lymph nodes [15] as well as one case of STB ascites [19] suggest a digestive tract route of infection in addition to the respiratory tract route.
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