Mycobacterium phlei
Classification
Bacteria, Actinobacteria, Actinomycetia, Corynebacteriales, Mycobaceriaceae, Mycolicibacterium
Species
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NCBI: [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/Browser/wwwtax.cgi?mode=Info&id=1007084&lvl= 3&lin=f&keep=1&srchmode=1&unlock] |
Mycobacterium Phlei
Description and Significance
Early findings of Mycobacterium Phlei or Mycolicibacterium Phlei, have reported the microorganism existing in a rod shaped, but there have also been reports of a coccoid form depending on environmental conditions. The coccoid form is the primary relaxed form of the organism and when introduced to nutrients, Mycobacterium Phlei transitions back to the rod shape (Das et al., 2016). The microorganism can usually be found in water ecosystems, forest biomes and in drinking water (Egamberdieva et al., 2011). The study of M. Phlei, enables a more comprehensive understanding of other pathogenic Mycobacteria such as Mycobacterium Tuberculosis.
Genome Structure
The size of the genome of M. Phlei is 5.64 million base pairs and encodes approximately 5,489 genes (Abdallah et al., 2012). M. phlei has a single circular chromosome (Qiu et al., 2022) In addition, the GC (guinane/cystosine) content of the genome is 69.24%, making it one of the highest among Mycobacteria. The genome also contains 2 rRNA operons, which are vital to the organisms survival (Das et al., 2016). Interestingly, M. Phlei contains genes encoding for polyamine metabolism and transport, which are not found in other mycobacteria. The number of sigma factors differs from strain to strain for this fast growing microorganism (Das et al., 2016).
Cell Structure, Metabolism and Life Cycle
M. Phlei are considered to be saprophytic organisms that absorb nutrients from plants (Egamberdieva et al., 2011). They are also capable of using hydrogen for autotrophic growth and carbon monoxide for a carbon/energy source under aerobic conditions (Pereira et al., 2020). In addition, the microorganism is able to withstand higher temperatures and has an optimal growth temperature of 45 °C.
Ecology and Pathogenesis
M. Phlei belongs to the group of nonpathogenic nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) (Tanaka et al., 2019). Although, considered nonpathogenic, M. phlei is still able to cause disease in humans, cattle and in cats (Egamberdieva et al., 2011). In cattle, a M. Phlei infection can produce symptoms such as lymphadenitis and cellulitis (Veterinary Medicine, 2017). In cats, infection can lead to a rare ulcerative skin lesion (Pereira et al., 2020). Arthritis, urethritis and conjunctivitis are caused by a human infection of M. phlei (Aguilar et al., 1989)
References
Abdallah AM, Rashid M, Adroub SA, Arnoux M, Ali S, van Soolingen D, Bitter W, Pain A. Complete genome sequence of Mycobacterium phlei type strain RIVM601174. J Bacteriol. 2012 Jun;194(12):3284-5. doi: 10.1128/JB.00485-12. PMID: 22628511; PMCID: PMC3370867.
Aguilar JL, Sanchez EE, Carrillo C, Alarcón GS, Silicani A. Septic arthritis due to Mycobacterium phlei presenting as infantile Reiter's syndrome. J Rheumatol. 1989 Oct;16(10):1377-8. PMID: 2810265.
Das S, Pettersson BM, Behra PR, Ramesh M, Dasgupta S, Bhattacharya A, Kirsebom LA. The Mycobacterium phlei Genome: Expectations and Surprises. Genome Biol Evol. 2016 Apr 8;8(4):975-85. doi: 10.1093/gbe/evw049. PMID: 26941228; PMCID: PMC4860684.
EGAMBERDIEVA, Dilfuza. Colonization of Mycobacterium Phlei in the Rhizosphere of ... - Dergipark. https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/121072.
Pereira AC, Ramos B, Reis AC, Cunha MV. Non-Tuberculous Mycobacteria: Molecular and Physiological Bases of Virulence and Adaptation to Ecological Niches. Microorganisms. 2020; 8(9):1380. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8091380
Qiu T, Luo G, Jiang J, Ding P, Li Q. Genomic, Metabolic, and Immunological Characterization of GMP-Grade Mycobacterium phlei. Microbiol Spectr. 2022 Aug 31;10(4):e0007022. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.00070-22. Epub 2022 Jun 21. PMID: 35727046; PMCID: PMC9430659.
4 - General Systemic States, Editor(s): Peter D. Constable, Kenneth W. Hinchcliff, Stanley H. Done, Walter Grünberg, Veterinary Medicine (Eleventh Edition), W.B. Saunders, 2017, Pages 43-112, ISBN 9780702052460, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-7020-5246-0.00004-8.(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780702052460000048)
Author
Page authored by Kai Smith], student of Prof. Bradley Tolar at UNC Wilmington.
