The discovery, function and development of the variable number tandem repeats in different Mycobacterium species

Abstract

The method of genotyping by variable number tandem repeats (VNTRs) facilitates the epidemiological studies of different Mycobacterium species worldwide. Until now, the VNTR method is not fully understood, for example, its discovery, function and classification. The inconsistent nomenclature and terminology of VNTR is especially confusing. In this review, we first describe in detail the VNTRs in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis), as this pathogen resulted in more deaths than any other microbial pathogen as well as for which extensive studies of VNTRs were carried out, and then we outline the recent progress of the VNTR-related epidemiological research in several other Mycobacterium species, such as M. abscessus, M. africanum, M. avium, M. bovis, M. canettii, M. caprae, M. intracellulare, M. leprae, M. marinum, M. microti, M. pinnipedii and M. ulcerans from different countries and regions. This article is aimed mainly at the practical notes of VNTR to help the scientists in better understanding and performing this method.

• Epidemiology
• genotyping
• Mycobacterium tuberculosis
• variable number tandem repeats

Acknowledgements

We thank the Beijing Bio-Bank of Clinical Resources on Tuberculosis for the isolates (D131100005313012), the Collaborative Innovation Center of Infectious Diseases (No. PXM2014_014226_000011), the Beijing Municipal Administration of Hospitals Clinical Medicine Development of Special Funding Support (ZYLX201304) and the Beijing High-level Technical Personnel Training Project in Health (2011-3-069) for financial support.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.