The thick waxy coat of mycobacteria, a protective layer against antibiotics and the host's immune system

Sarah M Batt; David E Minnikin; Gurdyal S Besra

doi:10.1042/BCJ20200194

The thick waxy coat of mycobacteria, a protective layer against antibiotics and the host's immune system

Sarah M Batt, David E Minnikin, Gurdyal S Besra

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

11 Citations (Scopus)

248 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Tuberculosis, caused by the pathogenic bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is the leading cause of death from an infectious disease, with a mortality rate of over a million people per year. This pathogen's remarkable resilience and infectivity is largely due to its unique waxy cell envelope, 40% of which comprises complex lipids. Therefore, an understanding of the structure and function of the cell wall lipids is of huge indirect clinical significance. This review provides a synopsis of the cell envelope and the major lipids contained within, including structure, biosynthesis and roles in pathogenesis.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1983-2006
Number of pages	24
Journal	The Biochemical journal
Volume	477
Issue number	10
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1042/BCJ20200194
Publication status	Published - 29 May 2020

Bibliographical note

Keywords

Cell Membranes
Excitation & Transport
Glycobiology
Microbiology
Molecular Interactions

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Batt_et_al_The_thick_waxy_coat_of_mycobacteria,_a_protective_layer_against_antibiotics_and_the_host's_immune_system_The_Biochemical_journal_2020Final published version, 5.25 MBLicence: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC BY)

https://doi.org/10.1042/BCJ20200194Licence: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC BY)

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Cell Envelope: unravelling complex cell wall assembly, degradation and re-cycling pathways
Besra, D. (Principal Investigator), Bhatt, A. (Co-Investigator), Futterer, K. (Co-Investigator), Alderwick, L. (Co-Investigator) & Zhang, J. (Co-Investigator)
Medical Research Council
1/03/19 → 28/02/25
Project: Research Councils
An integrated multi-disciplinary approach to unravel complex and essential cell wall biosynthetic pathways
Besra, D. (Principal Investigator) & Futterer, K. (Co-Investigator)
Wellcome Trust
1/01/08 → 30/06/13
Project: Research

Cite this

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abstract = "Tuberculosis, caused by the pathogenic bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is the leading cause of death from an infectious disease, with a mortality rate of over a million people per year. This pathogen's remarkable resilience and infectivity is largely due to its unique waxy cell envelope, 40\% of which comprises complex lipids. Therefore, an understanding of the structure and function of the cell wall lipids is of huge indirect clinical significance. This review provides a synopsis of the cell envelope and the major lipids contained within, including structure, biosynthesis and roles in pathogenesis.",

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AB - Tuberculosis, caused by the pathogenic bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is the leading cause of death from an infectious disease, with a mortality rate of over a million people per year. This pathogen's remarkable resilience and infectivity is largely due to its unique waxy cell envelope, 40% of which comprises complex lipids. Therefore, an understanding of the structure and function of the cell wall lipids is of huge indirect clinical significance. This review provides a synopsis of the cell envelope and the major lipids contained within, including structure, biosynthesis and roles in pathogenesis.

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KW - Excitation & Transport

KW - Glycobiology

KW - Microbiology

KW - Molecular Interactions

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JF - The Biochemical journal

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The thick waxy coat of mycobacteria, a protective layer against antibiotics and the host's immune system

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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Projects

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Cell Envelope: unravelling complex cell wall assembly, degradation and re-cycling pathways

An integrated multi-disciplinary approach to unravel complex and essential cell wall biosynthetic pathways

Cite this