MYCOBACTERIUM HASSIACUM SP-NOV, A NEW RAPIDLY GROWING THERMOPHILIC MYCOBACTERIUM

A new rapidly growing, scotochromogenic mycobacterium was isolated fro m urine, This strain is thermophilic (it grows at 65 degrees C), toler ates 5% NaCl, and was unable to utilize any of the sugars tested or ci trate or to take up iron, The isolate splits benzamide, urea, nicotina mide, and pyrazinamide and is sensitive to streptomycin, ethambutol, c ycloserine, ciprofloxacin, and chlarithromycin but resistant to isonia zid, rifampin, and prothionamide. These characteristics clearly place this organism in a new mycobacterial species, which was confirmed by t he unique 16S rRNA nucleotide sequence, The high level of similarity b etween this rapid grower and Mycobacterium xenopi is surprising, For t his new rapidly growing scotochromogenic and thermophilic mycobacteriu m we propose the name Mycobacterium hassiacum sp. nov.