[Pulmonary tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis of different genotypes]

A relationship of the clinical picture of destructive pulmonary tuberculosis to the genotype, drug resistance, and virulence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MBT) strains was studied. As compared with the processes induced by individual genotypes, pulmonary tuberculosis caused by MBT from the family Beijing was found to be characterized by more marked clinical symptoms, multisegmental lung tissue lesions with multiple decay cavities, by low bacteriostatic blood activity, abundant bacterial isolation, and progression. MBT of the Beijing genotype were characterized by higher rates of resistance to antituberculous drugs and their combinations than were the strains of individual genotypes; they have a high virulence, which is likely to enhance their transmissibility and to determine the poor course of a specific process.