Lecture 19 - Tuberculosis Flashcards
How long has tuberculosis been around?
When was it discovered?
Been around for centuries
Discovered in the 1880s
Which bacteria cause TB?
M. tuberculosis
M. bovis
What does infection usually present as?
Chronic pneumonia
Describe the onset of TB
Insidious
Slow, eventually getting worse and worse
What are the symptoms of TB?
- Cough
- Weight loss
- Fever
- Chills
Which organs are affected in TB?
Usually lungs
Other organs can be affected:
- lymph nodes
- brain
- bone
- urinary tract
Is TB an important disease?
2nd most common infection after HIV
Third of the world infected
8.8 million deaths in 2010
Compare ‘infection’ and ‘disease’
Latent infection: immune system is controlling disease
- no symptoms
Disease: bacteria escape the immune response
- symptoms
Can TB causing bacteria be drug resistant?
Talk to this
Yes
This year, there have been completely drug resistant strains reported
Resistance occurs through improper treatment with antibiotics
Which parts of the world experience the most TB infection?
Southern half of African continent
Russia
Asia
South east asia
How many species are there in the Mycobacterium genus?
Are they all pathogens?
There are many
Most are harmless
Some cause disease
What does M. tuberculosis cause?
What is the reservoir?
TB
Humans
What does T. bovis cause?
What is the reservoir?
TB
animals
What does M. ulcerans cause?
What is the reservoir?
Skin ulcers
Environment
What does M. leprae cause?
What is the reservoir?
Leprosy
Humans
What does MAC cause?
What is the reservoir?
TB-like disease in AIDS patients
Environmental
Are M. bovis infections commonly seen?
Not really anymore
Due to pasteurisation of milk
What are the oxygen requirements of M. tuberculosis?
Aerobic
What are some of the features of M. tuberculosis?
What are these features due to?
Acid fast Resistant to drying Resists killing by macrophages Resistant to common antimicrobials Slow growing
Due to the unusual cell wall composition
Describe the structure of the cell wall of M. tb
Plasma membrane Peptidoglycan Arabinogalactam Mycolic acids Superficial lipids LAM: lipoarabinomannam
In one word, describe the cell wall of M. tb
Waxy
What can’t the gram stain be used to visualise M. tuberculosis?
The cell wall is resistant to other dyes
How is M. tuberculosis stained?
Ziehl-Nielsen
- Carbon fuschin (strong dye) added for 10 minutes
- Every thing is now pink
- Decolorise with acid-alcohol
- Only M. tuberculosis retain the pink dye
- Everything else counter stained with a blue dye
How does M. tuberculosis get into us?
- Infected person has open lung lesion
- Infected person coughs / sneezes / talks
- Droplet nuclei released into air and remain for hours
- Droplet nuclei inhaled