All you want to know about Mycobacterium abscessus

Mycobacterium abscessus (MAB) is an emergent pathogen, mainly responsible of pulmonary infections, especially in persons with underlying respiratory diseases. Its natural multidrug resistance to antimicrobials makes MAB famous as a nightmare for infected patients and physicians, raising the need for innovative therapies. Although it is known as an environmental bacterium, there is still a mystery about MAB reservoirs (rarely isolated from the environment); and its transmission/acquisition modes are mainly unknown. Considered during the era of tuberculosis as a low pathogenic nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) species often not distinguished from M. chelonae, MAB can behave as a highly virulent bacterium in infected patients.