[In vitro interferon gamma production in mice vaccinated with 'Mycobacterium habana' against Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens].

Introduction: development of new antituberculosis vaccines requires the characterization of the cell-mediated immune responses induced by mycobacterial antigens.

Objective: to determine the immunogenic potential of 'Mycobacterium habana' TMC-5135 when using subcutaneous vaccine in Balb/c mice.

Methods: in this study, Balb/c mice were inoculated subcutaneously with live 'Mycobacterium habana' TMC-5135.

[Evaluation of quality control of baciloscopy in tuberculosis diagnosis in Cuba].

This study was aimed at evaluating the diag-nosis of tuberculosis in Provincial Hygiene and Epidemiological Centers of the country including special municipality Isle of Youth. The quality control was performed on 4 382 sputum smears from January to December 2004 following the Manual of procedures of the National Tuberculosis Control program. Good quality in Ziehl Neelsen extension and staining was seen in 4003 smears (91.

[Disseminated mycobacteriosis associated with Mycobacterium avium-intracellular (MAI) complex in HIV infected patients].

Different types of samples from a 27-year-old female patient who was diagnosed AIDS after presenting an acute respiratory picture caused by Pneumocistis carinii, in 1997, were studied. From that moment on, the patient continued having respiratory pictures repeatedly, until she was admitted at "Pedro Kouri" Institute of Tropical Medicine with a chronic diarrheical picture, significant loss of weight and extreme anorexia, together with a constant wet cough, fever, etc. The necessary complementary tests were made and a hyperergic Mantoux and very low levels of CD4 cells (under 200 cells/m3) outstood.

[Multiple drug resistance: a threat for tuberculosis control].

Drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) was reported soon after the introduction of streptomycin, although it did not receive major attention until recently. It was not considered a major issue in the industrialized world until outbreaks of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) were reported among HIV infected people. Administration of standard short-course chemotherapy (SSCC) with first-line drugs under directly observed therapy (DOT) is the cornerstone of modern TB control.

The number and organization of the rRNA genes of several strains of Mycobacterium simiae.

The type strain of Mycobacterium simiae and four Cuban strains, each representing a group of variants sharing a characteristic pattern of glycopeptidolipids, were investigated. Each of the five strains was found to have a single rRNA (rrn) operon per genome. Each rrn operon was found to be located downstream from murA.