Mycobacterium avium Infections of Acanthamoeba Strains: Host Strain Variability, Grazing-Acquired Infections, and Altered Dynamics of Inactivation with Monochloramine

Stable Mycobacterium avium infections of several Acanthamoeba strains were characterized by increased infection resistance of recent environmental isolates and reduced infectivity in the presence of other bacteria. Exposure of M. avium in coculture with Acanthamoeba castellanii to monochloramine yielded inactivation kinetics markedly similar to those observed for A. castellanii alone.