MAC

1. MAC Presented by: Lynsie Kamppi, Del Marie Patton, and Maureen Horsch

2. Specific Term • MAC(Mycobacterium avium complex) • MIC(Mycobacterium intracellulare complex) • MAC affects lungs, spleen, lymph nodes, and intestines

3. Characteristics • Found in HIV patients or individuals with compromised immune systems • One of many different types of Mycobacterium species • Classified as an acid-fast gram positive bacilli • Slender, nonmotile, and does not produce spores or capsules • Composed of aerobic species • Grows slowly, often requiring a month or more to form a visible colony on an agar surface • Usually found in people with under 50 T4 cells • Outer cell walls consist of mycolic acids, making the cells resistant to desiccation and to staining with water based dyes • Chemotrophs(use various metabolic pathways) • Enters through airways and invades macrophages where they become overwhelmed by replicating bacilli and die

4. Resistance to Rifampin and INH • Rifampin resistance results from chromosomal mutation that alters the binding site on an enzyme • INH(Isoniazid) resistance is due to random mutations of bacterial chromosomes that result in reduced drug uptake or alterations of target sites

5. Exchange DNA Method • The DNA exchange method is transformation, because it kills macrophages and the bacteria takes over.

6. Treatment • Suggested treatment would be azithromycin or clarithromycin. Effective treatment should continue for life

7. Prognosis • Most likely the patient will not conform to taking this treatment for life • The Mycobacterium may become resistant to these drugs • The HIV virus will eventually take the patients life

8. Precautions • Drinking water should be boiled • Avoid contact with animals, especially birds and bird droppings. Pigeons carry MAC • Avoid raw food and unpasteurized dairy products