Outbreaks of respiratory tract infections and emerging risk of encephalitis due to Mycoplasma pneumoniae: characterization by multiple genome analysis

A single bacterium, Mycoplasma pneumoniaie, may be involved in community-acquired pneumonia, acute attacks of asthma and even encephalitis, especially in children. The risk of severe outbreaks is high in confined settings like hospitals, and a fast response requires identifying the type of the bacterial isolate involved. Dr. Arabella Touati is developing a method to differentiate subtypes of M. pneumoniaie around the world that should work even if the isolates mutate over the course of an outbreak.