Elsevier

Tuberculosis

Volume 95, Issue 6, December 2015, Pages 810-816
Tuberculosis

Epidemiology
Whole genome sequencing identifies circulating Beijing-lineage Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains in Guatemala and an associated urban outbreak

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tube.2015.09.001Get rights and content
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open access

Summary

Limited data are available regarding the molecular epidemiology of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) strains circulating in Guatemala. Beijing-lineage Mtb strains have gained prevalence worldwide and are associated with increased virulence and drug resistance, but there have been only a few cases reported in Central America. Here we report the first whole genome sequencing of Central American Beijing-lineage strains of Mtb. We find that multiple Beijing-lineage strains, derived from independent founding events, are currently circulating in Guatemala, but overall still represent a relatively small proportion of disease burden. Finally, we identify a specific Beijing-lineage outbreak centered on a poor neighborhood in Guatemala City.

Keywords

Tuberculosis
Molecular epidemiology
Whole genome sequencing
Beijing strains
Guatemala
Central America

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1

These authors contributed equally.