30/03/2026
🦠 Mycobacterium tuberculosis
📌 Type / Classification
• Kingdom: Bacteria
• Shape: Rod-shaped (bacillus)
• Staining: Acid-fast bacilli (AFB) due to mycolic acid in cell wall
• Oxygen requirement: Obligate aerobe
• Growth: Slow-growing (takes 2–6 weeks on culture)
• Motility: Non-motile
• Spore formation: Non-spore forming
⚙️ Morphology
• Slender, slightly curved rods
• Arranged singly or in small groups
• Cell wall rich in lipids (mycolic acid) → gives resistance to drying, disinfectants
• Shows “beaded appearance” on staining
⚡ Pathogenesis (How it causes disease)
1. Entry into body
• Spread via airborne droplets (cough/sneeze of infected person)
2. Primary infection
• Bacteria reach alveoli of lungs
• Engulfed by macrophages but survive inside them
3. Multiplication
• Multiply within macrophages → spread to nearby lymph nodes
4. Immune response
• Body forms granuloma (tubercle) to contain infection
• Structure includes:
• Macrophages
• Giant cells (Langhans giant cells)
• Lymphocytes
5. Caseation necrosis
• Center becomes cheese-like (caseous necrosis)
6. Outcomes
• Latent TB: Bacteria dormant
• Active TB: Reactivation when immunity is low
🧪 Laboratory Diagnosis
1. Specimen
• Sputum (most common)
• Gastric lavage (children)
• Bronchoalveolar lavage
2. Microscopy
• Ziehl-Neelsen stain
• Shows red acid-fast bacilli against blue background
• Fluorescent staining (Auramine-rhodamine) → more sensitive
3. Culture
• Gold standard
• Media:
• Lowenstein-Jensen (LJ) medium
• Colonies:
• Rough, buff-colored (“rough, tough, buff”)
• Takes 2–6 weeks
4. Molecular methods
• CBNAAT (GeneXpert)
• Detects TB DNA
• Also detects rifampicin resistance
5. Tuberculin Skin Test (Mantoux test)
• Detects delayed hypersensitivity reaction
• Indicates exposure, not active disease
6. Chest X-ray
• Shows:
• Cavities
• Infiltrates (especially upper lobes)