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Preexisting and newly emerging resistant pathogen subpopulations (heteroresistance) are potential risk factors for treatment failure of multi/extensively drug resistant (MDR/XDR) tuberculosis (TB). Intrapatient evolutionary dynamics of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (Mtbc) strains and their implications on treatment outcomes are still not completely understood. To elucidate how Mtbc strains escape therapy, we analyzed 13 serial isolates from a German patient by whole-genome sequencing. Sequencing data were compared with phenotypic drug susceptibility profiles and the patient's collective 27-year treatment history to further elucidate factors fostering intrapatient resistance evolution. The patient endured five distinct TB episodes, ending in resistance to 16 drugs and a nearly untreatable XDR-TB infection. The first isolate obtained, during the patient's 5th TB episode, presented fixed resistance mutations to 7 anti-TB drugs, including isoniazid, rifampin, streptomycin, pyrazinamide, prothionamide, para-aminosalicylic acid, and cycloserine-terizidone. Over the next 13 years, a dynamic evolution with coexisting, heterogeneous subpopulations was observed in 6 out of 13 sequential bacterial isolates. The emergence of drug-resistant subpopulations coincided with frequent changes in treatment regimens, which often included two or fewer active compounds. This evolutionary arms race between competing subpopulations ultimately resulted in the fixation of a single XDR variant. Our data demonstrate the complex intrapatient microevolution of Mtbc subpopulations during failing MDR/XDR-TB treatment. Designing effective treatment regimens based on rapid detection of (hetero) resistance is key to avoid resistance development and treatment failure.

Mycobacterium abscessus is a highly antibiotic-resistant opportunistic pathogen causing clinically challenging infections in patients with preexisting lung diseases or under immunosuppression. Hence, reliable antibiotic susceptibility data are required for effective treatment. Aims of this study were to investigate (i) the congruence of genotypic and phenotypic antimicrobial susceptibility testing, (ii) the relationship between resistance profile and clinical course, and (iii) the phylogenetic relations of M. abscessus in a German patient cohort. A total of 39 isolates from 29 patients infected or colonized with M. abscessus underwent genotypic and phenotypic drug susceptibility testing. Clinical data were correlated with susceptibility data. Phylogenetic analysis was performed by means of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis. Macrolide resistance was mainly mediated by functional Erm(41) methyltransferases (T28 sequevars) in M. abscessus subsp. abscessus ( n  = 25) and M. abscessus subsp. bolletii ( n  = 2). It was significantly associated with impaired culture conversion ( P  = 0.02). According to the core SNP phylogeny, we identified three clusters of closely related isolates with SNP distances below 25. Representatives of all circulating global clones (Absc. 1, Absc. 2, and Mass. 1) were identified in our cohort. However, we could not determine evidence for in-hospital interhuman transmission from clinical data. In our patient cohort, we identified three M. abscessus clusters with closely related isolates and representatives of the previously described international clusters but no human-to-human in-hospital transmission. Macrolide and aminoglycoside susceptibility data are critical for therapeutic decision-making in M. abscessus infections., (Copyright © 2020 American Society for Microbiology.)

Mycobacterium bovis is the primary cause of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) and infects a wide range of domestic animal and wildlife species and humans. In Germany, bTB still emerges sporadically in cattle herds, free-ranging wildlife, diverse captive animal species, and humans. In order to understand the underlying population structure and estimate the population size fluctuation through time, we analyzed 131 M. bovis strains from animals ( n  = 38) and humans ( n  = 93) in Germany from 1999 to 2017 by whole-genome sequencing (WGS), mycobacterial interspersed repetitive-unit-variable-number tandem-repeat (MIRU-VNTR) typing, and spoligotyping. Based on WGS data analysis, 122 out of the 131 M. bovis strains were classified into 13 major clades, of which 6 contained strains from both human and animal cases and 7 only strains from human cases. Bayesian analyses suggest that the M. bovis population went through two sharp anticlimaxes, one in the middle of the 18th century and another one in the 1950s. WGS-based cluster analysis grouped 46 strains into 13 clusters ranging in size from 2 to 11 members and involving strains from distinct host types, e.g., only cattle and also mixed hosts. Animal strains of four clusters were obtained over a 9-year span, pointing toward autochthonous persistent bTB infection cycles. As expected, WGS had a higher discriminatory power than spoligotyping and MIRU-VNTR typing. In conclusion, our data confirm that WGS and suitable bioinformatics constitute the method of choice to implement prospective molecular epidemiological surveillance of M. bovis The population of M. bovis in Germany is diverse, with subtle, but existing, interactions between different host groups., (Copyright © 2020 American Society for Microbiology.)

Phenotypic drug susceptibility testing (DST) for the two first-line tuberculosis drugs ethambutol and pyrazinamide is known to yield unreliable and inaccurate results. In this prospective study, we propose a diagnostic algorithm combining phenotypic DST with Sanger sequencing to inform clinical decision-making for drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex isolates. Sequencing results were validated using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of the isolates. Resistance-conferring mutations obtained by pncA sequencing correlated well with phenotypic DST results for pyrazinamide. Phenotypic resistance to ethambutol was only partly explained by mutations in the embB 306 codon. Additional resistance-conferring mutations were found in the embB gene at codons 354, 406, and 497. In several isolates that tested ethambutol susceptibility by phenotypic DST, well-known resistance-conferring embB mutations were determined. Thus, targeted Sanger sequencing beyond the emb B 306 codon or WGS together with phenotypic DST should be employed to ensure reliable ethambutol drug susceptibility testing, as a basis for the rational design of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis regimens with or without ethambutol., (Copyright © 2019 Andres et al.)

For Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), the rapid and accurate diagnosis of drug resistance is crucial to ensure early initiation of appropriate therapy. Recently, a new molecular diagnostic test, the FluoroType MTBDR, aimed at detecting rifampin and isoniazid resistance has become available. This study aimed to evaluate the FluoroType MTBDR in comparison to phenotypic drug susceptibility testing (DST) using M. tuberculosis complex isolates. MTBC isolates underwent phenotypic DST and were tested using the FluoroType MTBDR and Genotype MTBDRplus. Sanger sequencing of the key regions of rpoB , katG , inhA , and aphC was performed for isolates with discordant phenotypic and molecular results. Furthermore, isolates with specific wild-type bands missing in the Genotype MTBDRplus, indicating the presence of a mutation, were investigated by Sanger sequencing. Specificity and sensitivity, defined as the proportions of isolates correctly determined as susceptible and resistant by the FluoroType MTBDR compared to phenotypic DST, were calculated. A total of 180 culture isolates were included; phenotypic DST showed 85 isolates susceptible to isoniazid and rifampin, 7 with isoniazid monoresistance, 7 with rifampin monoresistance, and 81 with multidrug resistance. The specificity of the FluoroType MTBDR was 100% (95% confidence interval [CI], 96.0 to 100%) for both rifampin and isoniazid. The sensitivity was 91.7% (95% CI, 83.6 to 96.6%) for isoniazid and 98.9% (95% CI, 93.8 to 100.0%) for rifampin. The FluoroType MTBDR has a high sensitivity and specificity for the detection of rifampin and isoniazid resistance when using culture isolates., (Copyright © 2018 Hillemann et al.)

Rapid and accurate drug susceptibility testing (DST) is essential for the treatment of multi- and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (M/XDR-TB). We compared the utility of genotypic DST assays with phenotypic DST (pDST) using Bactec 960 MGIT or Löwenstein-Jensen to construct M/XDR-TB treatment regimens for a cohort of 25 consecutive M/XDR-TB patients and 15 possible anti-TB drugs. Genotypic DST results from Cepheid GeneXpert MTB/RIF (Xpert) and line probe assays (LPAs; Hain GenoType MTBDR plus 2.0 and MTBDR sl 2.0) and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) were translated into individual algorithm-derived treatment regimens for each patient. We further analyzed if discrepancies between the various methods were due to flaws in the genotypic or phenotypic test using MIC results. Compared with pDST, the average agreement in the number of drugs prescribed in genotypic regimens ranged from just 49% (95% confidence interval [CI], 39 to 59%) for Xpert and 63% (95% CI, 56 to 70%) for LPAs to 93% (95% CI, 88 to 98%) for WGS. Only the WGS regimens did not contain any drugs to which pDST showed resistance. Importantly, MIC testing revealed that pDST likely underestimated the true rate of resistance for key drugs (rifampin, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and kanamycin) because critical concentrations (CCs) were too high. WGS can be used to rule in resistance even in M/XDR strains with complex resistance patterns, but pDST for some drugs is still needed to confirm susceptibility and construct the final regimens. Some CCs for pDST need to be reexamined to avoid systematic false-susceptible results in low-level resistant isolates., (Copyright © 2018 Heyckendorf et al.)

The rapid and robust identification of mutations in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) strains mediating multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) phenotypes is crucial to combating the MDR tuberculosis (TB) epidemic. Currently available molecular anti-TB drug susceptibility tests either are restricted to a single target or drug (i.e., the Xpert MTB/RIF test) or present a risk of cross-contamination due to the design limitations of the open platform (i.e., line probe assays). With a good understanding of the technical and commercial boundaries, we designed a test cartridge based on an oligonucleotide array into which dried reagents are introduced and which has the ability to identify MTBC strains resistant to isoniazid, rifampin, and the fluoroquinolones. The melting curve assay interrogates 43 different mutations in the rifampin resistance-determining region (RRDR) of rpoB , rpoB codon 572, katG codon 315, the inhA promoter region, and the quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) of gyrA in a closed cartridge system within 90 min. Assay performance was evaluated with 265 clinical MTBC isolates, including MDR/XDR, non-MDR, and fully susceptible isolates, from a drug resistance survey performed in Swaziland in 2009 and 2010. In 99.5% of the cases, the results were consistent with data previously acquired utilizing Sanger sequencing. The assay, which uses a closed cartridge system in combination with a battery-powered Alere q analyzer and which has the potential to extend the current gene target panel, could serve as a rapid and robust point-of-care test in settings lacking a comprehensive molecular laboratory infrastructure to differentiate TB patients infected with MDR and non-MDR strains and to assist clinicians with their early treatment decisions., (Copyright © 2018 Havlicek et al.)

A screening of more than 1,500 drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis revealed evolutionary patterns characteristic of positive selection for three alanine racemase (Alr) mutations. We investigated these mutations using molecular modeling, in vitro MIC testing, as well as direct measurements of enzymatic activity, which demonstrated that these mutations likely confer resistance to d-cycloserine., (Copyright © 2017 Nakatani et al.)

In this study, using the Hain GenoType MTBDR sl assays (versions 1 and 2), we found that some nonsynonymous and synonymous mutations in gyrA in Mycobacterium tuberculosis result in systematic false-resistance results to fluoroquinolones by preventing the binding of wild-type probes. Moreover, such mutations can prevent the binding of mutant probes designed for the identification of specific resistance mutations. Although these mutations are likely rare globally, they occur in approximately 7% of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis strains in some settings., (Copyright © 2017 Ajileye et al.)

Four out of 143 phenotypically isoniazid-resistant but rifampin-susceptible Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains that were isolated from patients in Germany in 2011 had mutations in the rifampin resistance-determining region of rpoB. After performing drug susceptibility testing (DST) with two methods, the proportion method on Löwenstein-Jensen medium and using the Bactec 960 Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tube system, we conclude that the two methods are equally reliable for phenotypic DST and MIC determination.

The Helicobacter pylori outer membrane protein HopZ is regulated by a phase-variable CT repeat and occurs in two distinct allelic variants. Whole-genome comparisons of isolates from one human volunteer recently provided evidence for in vivo selection for the hopZ ON status. We explored the frequency of sequence variation in hopZ during acute and chronic human infection and studied the association of hopZ with the phylogeographic population structure of H. pylori. hopZ ON variants were cultured from 24 out of 33 volunteers challenged with the hopZ OFF strain BCS 100. Transmission of H. pylori within families was also frequently associated with a status change of hopZ. In contrast, hopZ sequences obtained from 26 sets of sequential isolates from chronically infected individuals showed no changes of status, suggesting that the hopZ status selected during early infection is subsequently stable. Mutations leading to amino acid changes in HopZ occurred more frequently in ON than in OFF status isolates during chronic infection, indicating that sequence changes are more likely the result of positive selection in ON isolates than of a loss of negative selection pressure in OFF isolates. Analysis of 63 isolates from chronically infected individuals revealed no significant correlation of hopZ status with chronic atrophic gastritis. hopZ sequences were obtained from a globally representative collection of 54 H. pylori strains. All H. pylori populations contained hopZ-positive isolates. The data suggest that hopZ has been acquired and split into the two variants before the human migration out of Africa.