Tracing Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission by whole genome sequencing in a high incidence setting: a retrospective population-based study in East Greenland.

ABSTRACT: In East Greenland, a dramatic increase of tuberculosis (TB) incidence has been observed in recent years. Classical genotyping suggests a genetically similar Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) strain population as cause, however, precise transmission patterns are unclear. We performed whole genome sequencing (WGS) of Mtb isolates from 98% of culture-positive TB cases through 21 years (n = 182) which revealed four genomic clusters of the Euro-American lineage (mainly sub-lineage 4.8 (n = 134)). The time to the most recent common ancestor of lineage 4.8 strains was found to be 100 years. This sub-lineage further diversified in the 1970s, and massively expanded in the 1990s, a period of lowered TB awareness in Greenland. Despite the low genetic strain diversity, WGS data revealed several recent

SUBMITTER: Bjorn-Mortensen K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5018808 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature