[Abstract unavailable

In bacillary angiomatosis, either of two species of rochalimaea--R. quintana or R. henselae--can be isolated from cutaneous lesions or blood, providing an additional method of diagnosis.

Protozoans are gaining recognition as environmental hosts for a variety of waterborne pathogens. We compared the growth ofMycobacterium avium, a human pathogen associated with domestic water supplies, in coculture with the free-living amoebaAcanthamoeba polyphaga with the growth of M. avium when it was separated from amoebae by a 0.1-μm-pore-size polycarbonate membrane (in a parachamber). Although viable mycobacteria were observed within amoebal vacuoles, there was no significant difference between bacterial growth in coculture and bacterial growth in the parachamber. This suggests that M. avium is able to grow saprozoically on products secreted by the amoebae. In contrast,Legionella pneumophila, a well-studied intracellular parasite of amoebae, multiplied only in coculture. A comparison of amoebae infected with L. pneumophila and amoebae infected with M. avium by electron microscopy demonstrated that there were striking differences in the locations of the bacteria within amoebal cysts. While L. pneumophila resided within the cysts, M. avium was found within the outer walls of the double-walled cysts of A. polyphaga. These locations may provide a reservoir for the bacteria when environmental conditions become unfavorable.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis establishes infection, progresses towards disease, and is transmitted from the alveolus of the lung. However, the role of the alveolar epithelium in any of these pathogenic processes of tuberculosis is unclear. In this study, lung epithelial cells (

NoteMycobacterium shottsii sp. nov., a slowly growing species isolated from Chesapeake Bay striped bass (Morone saxatilis)