Soil Properties and Moisture Synergistically Influence Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Prevalence in Natural Environments of Hawai’i

Parsons, Arielle W.; Dawrs, Stephanie N.; Nelson, Stephen T.; Norton, Grant J.; Virdi, Ravleen; Hasan, Nabeeh A.; Epperson, L. Elaine; Holst, Brady; Chan, Edward D.; Leos‐Barajas, Vianey; Reich, Brian J.; Crooks, James; Strong, Michael; Pacifici, Krishna; Honda, Jennifer R.

doi:10.1128/aem.00018-22

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…Previous work has identified iron oxide minerals as a key soil component that supports NTM in Hawai'i (Glickman et al, 2020;Parsons et al, 2022). Our observations that phosphorus, sulfur, and TOC in Kīlauea soil are positively associated with NTM presence highlight additional factors that may enrich for NTM, particularly (a) Phylogenetic relationships between Kīlauea ash-derived M. abscessus (red squares), environmental isolates (triangles), and respiratory isolates (circles) from individuals residing in Hawai'i.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…Previous work has identified iron oxide minerals as a key soil component that supports NTM in Hawai'i (Glickman et al., 2020 ; Parsons et al., 2022 ). Our observations that phosphorus, sulfur, and TOC in Kīlauea soil are positively associated with NTM presence highlight additional factors that may enrich for NTM, particularly within the state of Hawai'i and other volcanic environments.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Hawaiian Volcanic Ash, an Airborne Fomite for Nontuberculous Mycobacteria

Dawrs,

Virdi,

Norton

et al. 2023

GeoHealth

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Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are environmentally acquired opportunistic pathogens that can cause chronic lung disease. Within the U.S., Hawai'i shows the highest prevalence rates of NTM lung infections. Here, we investigated a potential role for active volcanism at the Kīlauea Volcano located on Hawai'i Island in promoting NTM growth and diversity. We recovered NTM that are known to cause lung disease from plumbing biofilms and soils collected from the Kīlauea environment. We also discovered viable Mycobacterium avium, Mycobacterium abscessus, and Mycobacterium intracellulare subsp. chimaera on volcanic ash collected during the 2018 Kīlauea eruption. Analysis of soil samples showed that NTM prevalence is positively associated with bulk content of phosphorus, sulfur, and total organic carbon. In growth assays, we showed that phosphorus utilization is essential for proliferation of Kīlauea‐derived NTM, and demonstrate that NTM cultured with volcanic ash adhere to ash surfaces and remain viable. Ambient dust collected on O'ahu concurrent with the 2018 eruption contained abundant fresh volcanic glass, suggestive of inter‐island ash transport. Phylogenomic analyses using whole genome sequencing revealed that Kīlauea‐derived NTM are genetically similar to respiratory isolates identified on other Hawaiian Islands. Consequently, we posit that volcanic eruptions could redistribute environmental microorganisms over large scales. While additional studies are needed to confirm a direct role of ash in NTM dispersal, our results suggest that volcanic particulates harbor and can redistribute NTM and should therefore be studied as a fomite for these burgeoning, environmentally acquired respiratory infections.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hawaiian Volcanic Ash, an Airborne Fomite for Nontuberculous Mycobacteria

Dawrs,

Virdi,

Norton

et al. 2023

GeoHealth

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“…Hawai’i has more NTM lung disease cases per capita than any other US state [ 5 ]. Our prior research of 62 households found that clinically important NTM species are prevalent in the Hawai’i environment [ 6 ] and may be the source of the high rate of NTM infections [ 7 , 8 ]. To more broadly study NTM diversity, a Hawai’i-based community science network involving more than 200 local students and teachers from 11 different schools collected more than 2,800 environmental samples from across O’ahu, Kaua’i, Hawai’i Island, and Maui [ 9 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complete genome assembly of Hawai’i environmental nontuberculous mycobacteria reveals unexpected co-isolation with methylobacteria

Hendrix,

Epperson,

Tong

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are ubiquitous environmental opportunistic pathogens that can cause chronic lung disease. Within the United States, Hawai’i has the highest incidence of NTM lung disease, though the precise reasons are yet to be fully elucidated. One possibility is the high prevalence of NTM in the Hawai’i environment acting as a potential reservoir for opportunistic NTM infections. Through our previous initiatives to collect and characterize NTM in Hawai’i, community scientists of Hawai’i have collected thousands of environmental samples for sequencing. Here, these community scientists were invited for the first time into a high school lab in O’ahu for a genomic sequencing workshop, where participants sequenced four of the collected isolate genomic samples using the Oxford Nanopore Technologies MinION sequencer. Participants generated high quality long read data that when combined with short read Illumina data yielded complete bacterial genomic assemblies suitable for in-depth analysis. The gene annotation analysis identified a suite of genes that might help NTM thrive in the Hawai’i environment. Further, we found evidence of co-occurring methylobacteria, revealed from the sequencing data, suggesting that in some cases methylobacteria and NTM may coexist in the same niche, challenging previously accepted paradigms. The sequencing efforts presented here generated novel insights regarding the potential survival strategies and microbial interactions of NTM in the geographic hot spot of Hawai’i. We highlight the contributions of community scientists and present an activity that can be reimplemented as a workshop or classroom activity by other research groups to engage their local communities.

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“…For example, the presence of the organism in municipal drinking water sources, hospital water systems, and even industrial cooling towers [2,[47][48][49][50] increases the likelihood of exposure and colonization, even in non-developing nations with appropriately hygienic water supply infrastructure. Moreover, soil and dust-derived exposures can increase the risk of environmentally-sourced infections [51][52][53], as can the organism's fitness towards causing transmission through fomite contact [54], and together, these obstacles make prevention and treatment of MABC infections a formidable challenge. Given these issues, development of novel agents that circumvent MABC resistance mechanisms is an unmet and highly warranted need.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Omadacycline for management of Mycobacterium abscessus infections: a review of its effectiveness, place in therapy, and considerations for use

Rizzo

Moniri

2022

BMC Infect Dis

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The Mycobacteriumabscessus complex (MABC) is a group of acid-fast, rapidly dividing non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) that include a number of clinically important subspecies, including M.abscessus,M.bolletii, and M.massiliense. These organisms are prevalent in the environment and are primarily associated with human pulmonary or skin and skin structure infections (SSSI) but may cause more deep-seeded disseminated infections and bacteremia in the immunocompromised. Importantly, these NTM are resistant to most first-line anti-tuberculous agents and, due to intrinsic or acquired resistance, exhibit exceedingly low, variable, and geographically distinct susceptibilities to commonly used antibacterial agents including older tetracyclines, macrolides, aminoglycosides, cephalosporins, carbapenems, and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim. Omadacycline is a novel third-generation member of the tetracycline family of antibacterials that has recently been demonstrated to have potent anti-NTM effects and clinical efficacy against MABC, including M.abscessus. The purpose of this review is to present a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment on the body of literature on the role of omadacycline for M.abscessus infections. Specifically, the in vitro and in vivo microbiology, mechanisms of action, mechanisms of resistance, clinical pharmacokinetics, clinical efficacy, adverse effects, dosage and administration, and place in therapy of omadacycline in management of M.abscessus infections will be detailed.

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Soil Properties and Moisture Synergistically Influence Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Prevalence in Natural Environments of Hawai’i

Abstract: Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are ubiquitous in the environment, being found commonly in soils and natural bodies of freshwater. However, little is known about the environmental niches of NTM and how they relate to NTM prevalence in homes and other human-dominated areas.

Cited by 8 publications

References 64 publications

Hawaiian Volcanic Ash, an Airborne Fomite for Nontuberculous Mycobacteria

Hawaiian Volcanic Ash, an Airborne Fomite for Nontuberculous Mycobacteria

Complete genome assembly of Hawai’i environmental nontuberculous mycobacteria reveals unexpected co-isolation with methylobacteria

Omadacycline for management of Mycobacterium abscessus infections: a review of its effectiveness, place in therapy, and considerations for use

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