Mycobacteroides abscessus strain:M. AB-1 | isolate:Patient with wound infections Genome sequencing. Mycobacteroides abscessus strain:M. AB-1 | isolate:Patient with wound infections

Rapidly growing mycobacteria have become an emerging health concern due to the increase in their prevalence worldwide. The data on RGM infections is lacking in many countries including Pakistan because of the non-availability or high cost of diagnostic tests for identifying them. There is also a vast geographic variation in the prevalence of RGM and the specific species causing the infection. This study will determine the frequency of NTM disease caused by rapidly growing mycobacteria in our setup. The results of the study will also be helpful in decision-making regarding the need for diagnostic tests to identify RGM in our setup. In countries where tuberculosis is common, infections caused by RGM are misdiagnosed and treated mistakenly as tuberculosis. Rapidly growing mycobacteria are resistant to first-line antituberculous drugs and the treatment regime also varies from species to species. This study will also help us in the accurate identification of NTM species infections and will facilitate clinicians to prescribe appropriate antibiotic treatment. This study will also determine the whole genome sequencing of RGM. To the best of our knowledge, this will be the first study of Pakistan that will investigate the genomic and phylogenetic determinants of RGM using whole genome sequencing. This study will help in genomic comparative analysis and phylogenetic analysis with other regions of the world.