Mycobacterium aichiense

Mycobacterium aichiense is a yellow-orange scotochromogenic, rapidly growing mycobacterium first isolated from soil and human sputum in Japan. It has not been formally associated with disease in humans.

Description

Microscopy

• Gram-positive, nonmotile and acid-fast rods less than 2 µm. Acid-fast in young cultures but may lose acid-fastness on prolonged culture.

Colony characteristics

• Yellow-orange scotochromogenic colonies.

Physiology

• Grows at 25-37°C, not at 45°C, in 3–4 days or less
• Acid phosphatase and arylsulfatase (3 days) is positive.
• Negative for nitrate reduction, isonicotinamidase, and citrate utilisation.
• Does not grow in the presence of hydroxylamine HCl (500 mg/l) and does not degrade PAS.

Pathogenesis

• Not associated with disease.

Type strain

• First isolated in Japan from soil and human sputum.
• Strain 49005 (previously, strain 5545) = ATCC 27280 = CIP 106808 = DSM 44147 = JCM 6376 = LMG 19259 = NCTC 10820.

References

• SUKAMURA (M.), MIZUNO (S.) and TSUKAMURA (S.): Numerical analysis of rapidly growing, scotochromogenic mycobacteria, including Mycobacterium obuense sp. nov., nom. rev., Mycobacterium rhodesiae sp. nov., nom. rev., Mycobacterium aichiense sp. nov., nom. rev., Mycobacterium chubuense sp. nov., nom. rev., and Mycobacterium tokaiense sp. nov., nom. rev. Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol., 1981, 31, 263-275.