Buruli Ulcer, a Prototype for Ecosystem-Related Infection, Caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans.

ABSTRACT: Buruli ulcer is a noncontagious disabling cutaneous and subcutaneous mycobacteriosis reported by 33 countries in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and South America. The causative agent, Mycobacterium ulcerans, derives from Mycobacterium marinum by genomic reduction and acquisition of a plasmid-borne, nonribosomal cytotoxin mycolactone, the major virulence factor. M. ulcerans-specific sequences have been readily detected in aquatic environments in food chains involving small mammals. Skin contamination combined with any type of puncture, including insect bites, is the most plausible route of transmission, and skin temperature of <30°C significantly correlates with the topography of lesions. After 30 years of emergence and increasing prevalence between 1970 and 2010, mainly in Afr

SUBMITTER: Zingue D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5740976 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature