Tedizolid is a new oxazolidinone with improved in vitro and intracellular potency against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, including multidrug-resistant strains, and some species of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) compared with that of linezolid. Using the current Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI)-recommended method of broth microdilution, susceptibility testing of 170 isolates of rapidly growing mycobacteria showed equivalent or lower (1-to 8-fold) MIC 50 and/or MIC 90 values for tedizolid compared with that for linezolid. The tedizolid MIC 90 values for 81 isolates of M. abscessus subsp. abscessus and 12 isolates of M. abscessus subsp. massiliense were 8 g/ml and 4 g/ml, respectively, compared with linezolid MIC 90 values of 32 g/ml for both. The MIC 90 values for 20 isolates of M. fortuitum were 2 g/ml for tedizolid and 4 g/ml for linezolid. Twenty-two isolates of M. chelonae had tedizolid and linezolid MIC 90 s of 2 g/ml and 16 g/ml, respectively. One hundred forty-two slowly growing NTM, including 7/7 M. marinum, 7/7 M. kansasii, and 7/11 of other less commonly isolated species, had tedizolid MICs of Յ1 g/ml and linezolid MICs of Յ4 g/ml. One hundred isolates of Mycobacterium avium complex and eight M. simiae isolates had tedizolid MIC 50 s of 8 g/ml and linezolid MIC 50 s 32 and 64 g/ml, respectively. Nine M. arupense isolates had MIC 50 s of 4 g/ml and 16 g/ml for tedizolid and linezolid, respectively. These findings demonstrate a greater in vitro potency of tedizolid than linezolid against NTM and suggest that an evaluation of tedizolid as a potential treatment agent for infections caused by selected NTM is warranted.KEYWORDS oxazolidinones, susceptibility testing, tedizolid N ontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are responsible for a multiplicity of different types of infections, including respiratory, cutaneous, and systemic infections. Many species of NTM are multidrug resistant (1), emphasizing the urgent need for new antimicrobials with efficacies against these organisms.Tedizolid phosphate is a novel oxazolidinone prodrug (TR-701) that is transformed in the serum into the active drug, tedizolid ([TZD] TR-700, formerly DA-7157) (2) with a broad range of activities against Gram-positive microorganisms, including mycobacteria. The mechanism of action of TZD is by the inhibition of protein synthesis. TZD binds to the 50S ribosome, apparently at a site near the 30S ribosome, which blocks the formation of the 70S initiation complex and, in turn, prevents protein synthesis (3). The supposition is that the major site of action of oxazolidinones is at the ribosomal peptidyltransferase center, and this unique mechanism of action eliminates the likelihood of cross-resistance with other antimicrobial classes (3).Previous reports of in vitro and in vivo (intracellular) activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, including multidrug-resistant strains (4), and Nocardia brasiliensis have been published (5-7). A previously published study by Vera-Cabrera et al. showed in vitro activities of TZ...