Sue,
You’re absolutely right, I should have been clearer when referring to the entire topic (not just that post). I admit I am still learning a lot about bugs, especially when trying to understand how mycobacteria are “not really” gram negative or gram positive critters! My point was that both mycoplasmas and mycobacteria are implicated in arthritides and even in
device infections.
I’ve been a bit tight lipped about the on-camera interviews I’ve conducted in the last six months, so let me broach these recent developments. As you know, some of my research interests are focused on pre and post-operative infections caused by all different kinds of microbes. I’ve interviewed top scientists at NIH, orthopedic and microbiology researchers at several universities, with more scheduled in the coming months. I’ll probably set up another web site to share some of these videos, but I’ve not decided yet because of time & resources.
Back to your point: here are some definitions I found quickly below. I think there are better ones elsewhere (more current), but for now…
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Mycoplasma: The mycoplasma are a very large group of bacteria. There are more than 70 types. Mycoplasma hominis and Mycoplasma pneumoniae are among the dozen types of mycoplasma that occur in humans. Mycoplasma hominis is a common inhabitant of the vagina and can cause infections of the female and male genital tracts.
Mycoplasma pneumoniae can infect the upper respiratory tract and the lungs. It is a major cause of respiratory infection in children of school age and young adults. It is also a common cause of pneumonia in persons with HIV. Certain antibiotics including tetracycline and erythromycin are frequently used to treat infection with Mycoplasma hominis or Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Mycoplasma are very simple one-celled organisms without an outer membrane. They penetrate and infect individual cells.
Mycobacterium: A large
family of
bacteria that have unusually waxy cell walls that are resistant to digestion.
The mycobacteria includes:
Mycobacterium avium -- which causes tuberculosis in birds and immunodeficient people;
Mycobacterium leprae -- which causes leprosy;
Mycobacterium marinum -- which causes swimming pool granuloma;
Mycobacterium tuberculosis -- which causes most cases of tuberculosis;
Mycobacterium ulcerans -- which causes Buruli ulcer.
The mycobacteria are acid-fast rod-shaped bacteria. They are usually slow-growing. Many are intracellular parasites.