Non-human sources of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a successful pathogen responsible for the vast majority of deadly tuberculosis cases in humans. It rests in a dormant form in contaminated people who constitute the reservoir with airborne interhuman transmission during pulmonary tuberculosis. M. tuberculosis is therefore regarded majoritary as a human pathogen. Here, we review the evidence for anthroponotic M. tuberculosis infection in non-human primates, other mammals and psittacines. Some infected animals may be sources for zoonotic tuberculosis caused by M. tuberculosis, with wild life trade and zoos being amplifying factors. Moreover, living animals and cadavers can scatter M. tuberculosis in the environment where it could survive for extended periods of time in soil where amoebae could play a role. Although marginal in the epidemiology of human tuberculosis, these data indicate that M. tuberculosis is not uniquely adapted to humans.