Zoonotic Leprosy in the U.S.

Home>
Specialties>
Infectious Diseases>
Summary and Comment

Zoonotic Leprosy in the U.S.

Detailed genetic analysis of Mycobacterium leprae isolates from wild armadillos and human patients suggests that leprosy may be a zoonosis in the southern U.S.

Despite suspicion that some leprosy patients in the U.S. might have acquired their disease from armadillos, causality has not been proven. To further explore this possibility, investigators performed an ecologic cohort study that involved skin-biopsy specimens from 50 leprosy patients who lived in the southern U.S. and tissue samples from 33 wild armadillos from the same geographic region.

Whole-genome sequencing, single nucleotide polymorphism typing, and variable-number tandem-repeat analysis were used to molecularly characterize the Mycobacterium leprae strains isolated from these samples.

One genotype, labeled 31-2-v1, appeared to be unique and highly distinctive and was significantly associated with a history of residence in regions where infected wild armadillos have been found (P<0.001). This genotype was recovered from 28 of 33 armadillos and from 25 of the 39 patients who lived in regions where exposure to infected armadillos was possible; the genotype has not been reported from anywhere else in the world. There was some suggestion that contact with an armadillo might increase the likelihood of infection with this unique strain (odds ratio, 4.0; 95% confidence interval, 0.5–35.8).

Comment: The results of this in-depth strain analysis are intriguing and should encourage additional activities to confirm the impression that zoonotic leprosy occurs in the southern U.S.

— Larry M. Baddour, MD

Published in Journal Watch Infectious Diseases April 27, 2011

Citation(s):

Truman RW et al. Probable zoonotic leprosy in the southern United States. N Engl J Med 2011 Apr 28; 364:1626.

Medline abstract (Free)

Your Remark:

Reader Remarks are intended to encourage lively discussion of clinical topics with your peers in the medical community. We ask that you keep your remarks to a reasonable length, and we reserve the right to withhold publication of remarks that do not meet this standard.

The editors of Journal Watch may respond to Reader Remarks, but we cannot promise to respond to a particular remark.

Remark subject:*

Your remark:*

Fields marked with an * are required.

Name as you'd like it to appear:
First & middle initial:*

Last:*

Email address (will not
be published):*

Professional specialty:*

Place of work (optional):

Submitting a comment indicates you have read and agreed to the remark guidelines and declare:*

No competing interests

Or, the following competing interests (for example, financial stakes or professional relationships):

PRIVACY: We will not use your email address, submitted for a comment, for any other purpose nor sell, rent, or share your e-mail address with any third parties. Please see our Privacy Policy.

CLEAR erases anything you've added in any part of the form. CONTINUE allows you to check your entire post (and edit it if necessary) before submitting.

To ensure that your Reader Remark is not formatted as one long paragraph, precede new paragraphs with either a blank line or an indentation.