Clonal Population of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Strains Reside within Multiple Lung Cavities
2011

Clonal Mycobacterium tuberculosis Strains in Lung Cavities

Sample size: 5 publication Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Viral Vadwai, Gustad Udwadia, Zarir Sadani, Meeta Shetty, Anjali Rodrigues, Camilla Rodrigues

Primary Institution: P. D. Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Centre, Mumbai, India

Hypothesis

Are single or multiple strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis localized within lung cavities of patients suffering from chronic progressive TB?

Conclusion

The study found that clonal populations of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains reside within multiple lung cavities of patients, indicating the absence of multiple MTB infections.

Supporting Evidence

  • Three of the 5 patients had extensive drug-resistant TB.
  • Identical spoligotype patterns and MIRU-VNTR profiles were found between multiple cavities of each patient.
  • Only 2 out of 5 patients showed positive clinical outcomes post-surgery.

Takeaway

Doctors looked at the lungs of 5 patients with a tough kind of tuberculosis and found that they had the same type of bacteria in different spots, which helps understand how to treat them better.

Methodology

The study analyzed multiple cavity isolates from the lungs of 5 patients who underwent pulmonary resection surgery, using drug susceptibility profiles and genotyping methods.

Potential Biases

Potential bias due to reliance on historical treatment data and the small sample size.

Limitations

The small sample size limits the ability to determine risk factors for chronic progressive disease, and drug susceptibility tests were performed on cultured isolates rather than directly on specimens.

Participant Demographics

Patients included 3 females and 2 males, aged between 21 and 49 years, all HIV negative.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1371/journal.pone.0024770

Want to read the original?

Access the complete publication on the publisher's website

View Original Publication