Cytological and transcript analyses reveal fat and lazy persister-like bacilli in tuberculous sputum.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Tuberculous sputum provides a sample of bacilli that must be eliminated by chemotherapy and that may go on to transmit infection. A preliminary observation that Mycobacterium tuberculosis cells contain triacylglycerol lipid bodies in sputum, but not when growing in vitro, led us to investigate the extent of this phenomenon and its physiological basis.

Methods and findings

Microscopy-positive sputum samples from the UK and The Gambia were investigated for their content of lipid body-positive mycobacteria by combined Nile red and auramine staining. All samples contained a lipid body-positive population varying from 3% to 86% of the acid-fast bacilli present. The recent finding that triacylglycerol synthase is expressed by mycobacteria when they enter in vitro nonrep

SUBMITTER: Garton NJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2276522 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature