Manuel T Silva, Françoise Portaels, Jorge Pedrosa
The necrotising skin infection Buruli ulcer is at present the third most common human mycobacteriosis worldwide, after tuberculosis and leprosy. Buruli ulcer is an emergent disease that is predominantly found in humid tropical regions. There is no vaccine against Buruli ulcer and its treatment is difficult. In addition to the huge social effect, Buruli ulcer is of great scientific interest because of the unique characteristics of its causative organism, Mycobacterium ulcerans. This pathogen is genetically very close to the typical intracellular parasites Mycobacterium marinum and Mycobacterium tuberculosis...
November 2009: Lancet Infectious Diseases