History, biology and chemistry of Mycobacterium ulcerans infections (Buruli ulcer disease).

Abstract

Mycobacterium ulcerans infections (Buruli ulcer disease) have a long history that can be traced back 150 years. The successive discoveries of the mycobacteria in 1948 and of mycolactone A/B in 1999, the toxin responsible for this dramatic necrotic skin disease, resulted in a paradigm shift concerning the disease itself and in a broader sense, delineated an entirely new role for bioactive polyketides as virulence factors. The fascinating history, biology and chemistry of M. ulcerans infections are discussed in this review.

• Authors: Anne-Caroline Chany, Cédric Tresse, Virginie Casarotto, Nicolas Blanchard
• Journal: Natural product reports (Nat Prod Rep) Vol. 30 Issue 12 Pg. 1527-67 (Dec 2013) ISSN: 1460-4752 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 24178858 (Publication Type: Historical Article, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)

Chemical References

• Macrolides
• mycolactone B

Topics

• Buruli Ulcer (history)
• History, 20th Century
• Humans
• Macrolides (chemical synthesis, chemistry)
• Molecular Structure