Author:
Av-Gay Yossef,Sobouti Rafat
Abstract
In this report we show that fast-growing non-pathogenic mycobacteria degrade cholesterol from liquid media, and are able to grow on cholesterol as a sole carbon source. In contrast, slow-growing mycobacteria, including pathogenic Mycobacterium tuberculosis and bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), do not degrade and use cholesterol as a carbon source. Nevertheless, pathogenic mycobacteria are able to uptake, modify, and accumulate cholesterol from liquid growth media, and form a zone of clearance around a colony when plated on solid media containing cholesterol. These data suggest that cholesterol may have a role in mycobacterial infection other than its use as carbon source.Key words: mycobacteria, cholesterol, biodegradation.
Publisher
Canadian Science Publishing
Subject
Genetics,Molecular Biology,Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology,General Medicine,Immunology,Microbiology
Cited by
25 articles.
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