01977nas a2200253   4500000000100000008004100001260004300042653003000085653002300115653003300138653002100171653002100192653002500213653003100238653003100269653002400300100001100324700001200335245013000347300001100477490000900488520121200497022001401709       2012                            d  c2012 MarbElsevier Pub. Co.aAmsterdam10aAdaptation, Physiological10aBacterial Proteins10aBiological Transport, Active10aCarrier Proteins10aGenes, Bacterial10aMycobacterium leprae10aMycobacterium tuberculosis10aSequence Analysis, Protein10aSpecies Specificity1 aYoum J1 aSaier M00aComparative analyses of transport proteins encoded within the genomes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae.  a776-970 v18183 a<p>The co-emergence of multidrug resistant pathogenic bacterial strains and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus pandemic has made tuberculosis a leading public health threat. The causative agent is Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtu), a facultative intracellular parasite. Mycobacterium leprae (Mle), a related organism that causes leprosy, is an obligate intracellular parasite. Given that different transporters are required for bacterial growth and persistence under a variety of growth conditions, we conducted comparative analyses of transport proteins encoded within the genomes of these two organisms. A minimal set of genes required for intracellular and extracellular life was identified. Drug efflux systems utilizing primary active transport mechanisms have been preferentially retained in Mle and still others preferentially lost. Transporters associated with environmental adaptation found in Mtu were mostly lost in Mle. These findings provide starting points for experimental studies that may elucidate the dependencies of pathogenesis on transport for these two pathogenic mycobacteria. They also lead to suggestions regarding transporters that function in intra- versus extra-cellular growth.</p>  a0006-3002