Mycobacterium abscessus research: learning from challenges

Mycobacterium abscessus (Mab), a rapidly growing mycobacterial species with intrinsic and acquired resistance to multiple antibiotics, is an emerging public health concern. The rise in clinical cases of treatment-refractory infections of M. abscessus has propelled its research toward novel therapeutic approaches. The number of publications entitled "Mycobacterium abscessus" has increased by ~300% over the last decade, of which the majority of studies exploring the fundamental biology and pathogenesis of Mab have used the reference strain ATCC19977. However, whole-genome sequence analyses, combined with transposon-seq based functional genomics, reveal an open pan-genome with significant variations in the essential genes across ATCC19977 and clinical isolates. These new discoveries demand a careful selection of strains and growth conditions in experimental design. In this minireview, we discuss these challenges and propose a framework for future M. abscessus studies in silico, including a new web-based resource for pangenome analysis, in vitro, and in animal models.