Mycobacterium kansasii Genome sequencing and assembly. Mycobacterium kansasii

Mycobacterium kansasii is one of the most significant non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) pathogens isolated from clinical specimens and responsible for a large part of NTM infections in human population. However, culturing of M. kansasii from human tissues may not necessarily represent true infection but a non-pathogenic colonization. Grouping of M. kansasii into seven genetically similar subtypes (I-VII) adds more complexity to the clinical and epidemiological relevance of M. kansasii isolations. Of these subtypes, type I represents the most frequently isolated from human sources and involved in the causation of NTM disease. In this study, we report the draft genome sequences of different M. kansasii strains recovered from human samples, including strains which had been recognized as causative agents of NTM disease.