Patients infected with Mycobacterium africanum versus Mycobacterium tuberculosis possess distinct intestinal microbiota.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), is composed of eight subspecies. TB in West Africa, in contrast to other geographical regions, is caused by Mycobacterium africanum (MAF) in addition to M. tuberculosis (MTB), with both infections presenting similar symptoms. Nevertheless, MAF is considered to be hypovirulent in comparison with MTB and less likely to progress to active disease. In this study, we asked whether MAF and MTB infected patients possess distinct intestinal microbiomes and characterized how these microbiota communities are affected by anti-tuberculosis therapy (ATT). Additionally, we assessed if the changes in microbiota composition following infection correlate with pathogen induced alterations in host blood-gene expre

SUBMITTER: Namasivayam S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7219701 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature