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Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb), also known as Koch's bacillus, is a species of pathogenic bacteria in the family Mycobacteriaceae and the causative agent of tuberculosis. [1] [2] First discovered in 1882 by Robert Koch, M. tuberculosis has an unusual, waxy coating on its cell surface primarily due to the presence of mycolic acid.
Tuberculosis is spread from one person to the next through the air when people who have active TB in their lungs cough, spit, speak, or sneeze. [1] [9] People with latent TB do not spread the disease. [1] Active infection occurs more often in people with HIV/AIDS and in those who smoke. [1]
Ultimately, though, TB can avoid the mucus traps and make its way to the deep airways and alveoli where we have macrophages which eat up foreign cells, digest, and destroy them. With TB, they recognize foreign proteins on their cell surface, and phagocytize them, or essentially package them into a space called a phagosome.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the most common cause of both pulmonary tuberculosis and tuberculous lymphadenitis. [1] [6] Historically, transmission of Mycobacterium bovis from dairy consumption was another frequent cause of tuberculous lymphadenitis, but incidence has drastically decreased in developed countries since the advent of pasteurization and other efforts to prevent bovine ...
An infectious disease agent can be transmitted in two ways: as horizontal disease agent transmission from one individual to another in the same generation (peers in the same age group) [3] by either direct contact (licking, touching, biting), or indirect contact through air – cough or sneeze (vectors or fomites that allow the transmission of the agent causing the disease without physical ...
Tuberculosis can also spread through the blood from the primary focus to elsewhere in the abdomen. Abdominal solid organs, kidneys, lymph nodes and peritoneum can be affected this way. [ 2 ] Tuberculosis is also reported to spread to the peritoneum directly from adjacently situated infected foci, such as from the fallopian tubes, adnexa, psoas ...
[citation needed] "When a person develops active TB (disease), the symptoms (cough, fever, night sweats, weight loss etc.) may be mild for many months. This can lead to delays in seeking care, and results in transmission of the bacteria to others." [11] Tuberculosis does not always settle in the lungs.
Some infectious diseases can be spread via respiratory droplets expelled from the mouth and nose, as when a person sneezes. A respiratory droplet is a small aqueous droplet produced by exhalation, consisting of saliva or mucus and other matter derived from respiratory tract surfaces. Respiratory droplets are produced naturally as a result of ...