Probable long-term prevalence for a predominant Mycobacterium
tuberculosis clone of a Beijing genotype in Colon, Panama
Abstract
Beijing genotype Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains associate with
increased virulence, resistance, and/or higher transmission rates. This
study describes a specific Beijing strain predominantly identified in
the Panamanian province of Colon with one of the highest incidence of
tuberculosis in the country. Retrospective Mycobacterial Interspersed
Repetitive-Unit/Variable-Number of Tandem Repeats analysis of 42
isolates collected between January-August 2018, allowed to identify a
cluster (Beijing A) with 17 (40.5%) Beijing isolates. Subsequent
prospective strain-specific PCR based surveillance from September 2019
to March 2020, confirmed the predominance of the Beijing A strain
(44.1%) in this province. Whole genome sequencing revealed
higher-than-expected diversity within the cluster, suggesting long-term
prevalence of this strain and low number of cases caused by recent
transmission. The Beijing A strain belongs to the Asian African 3
(Bmyc13, L2.2.5) branch of the modern Beijing sublineage, with their
closest isolates corresponding to cases from Vietnam, probably
introduced in Panama between 2000 and 2012.