Impact of Temperature and Oxygen Availability on Gene Expression Patterns of Mycobacterium ulcerans

Abstract

Buruli ulcer is a debilitating skin disease caused by the environmental pathogen Mycobacterium ulcerans . M. ulcerans produces a toxic compound, mycolactone, which leads to tissue necrosis and ulceration. Barriers to preventing Buruli ulcer include an incomplete understanding of M. ulcerans reservoirs, how the pathogen is transmitted, and under what circumstances mycolactone and other M. ulcerans genes are expressed and produced in its natural environment and in the host.