Genetic Manipulation of Non-tuberculosis Mycobacteria

Chimukuche, Nyaradzai; Williams, Monique Joy

Genetic Manipulation of Non-tuberculosis Mycobacteria

Journal Article

2021-02-17

Journal Title

Frontiers in Microbiology

Link to Journal

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology

Department

Department of Molecular and Cell Biology

Faculty

Faculty of Science

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Abstract

Non-tuberculosis mycobacteria (NTMs) comprise a large group of organisms that are phenotypically diverse. Analysis of the growing number of completed NTM genomes has revealed both significant intra-genus genetic diversity, and a high percentage of predicted genes that appear to be unique to this group. Most NTMs have not been studied, however, the rise in NTM infections in several countries has prompted increasing interest in these organisms. Mycobacterial research has recently benefitted from the development of new genetic tools and a growing number of studies describing the genetic manipulation of NTMs have now been reported. In this review, we discuss the use of both site-specific and random mutagenesis tools in NTMs, highlighting the challenges that exist in applying these techniques to this diverse group of organisms.