ADVANCES IN MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS GENOMICS: EVOLUTION, RESISTANCE, AND DISEASE CONTROL

Abstract

Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), a group of virtually genetically identical microorganisms, is the primary cause of tuberculosis (TB), the deadliest infectious disease in the world. Standard bacterial profiling methods like multilocus sequence typing are unable to distinguish its strains due to this severe DNA similarity and clonal reproduction. Recent developments in whole-genome sequencing of clinical samples from around the world have revolutionized our understanding of the disease. We now have a better understanding of its evolutionary path, host-level genetic dynamics, medication resistance mechanisms, and transition into an obligatory parasite. In order to show how these recent findings can improve international public health interventions and guide future research funding, this paper summarizes them.