Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) (MAP)

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is a slow-growing, acid-fast bacterium belonging to the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) [National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), 2023]. It is the established causative agent of Johne's disease, a chronic and often fatal enteritis in cattle and other ruminants, and is a suspected environmental trigger or causative agent for Crohn's disease in humans [Chiodini et al., 2012, Journal of Clinical Microbiology]. MAP is distinguished by its extreme environmental resilience and its requirement for exogenous mycobactin for growth in laboratory culture [NCBI, 2023]. Within the host, MAP primarily infects macrophages, where it evades the immune system by preventing phagosome maturation [PubMed, 2021, Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology]. Treatment of MAP infections typically requires prolonged combination antibiotic therapy, such as the RHB-104 regimen (clarithromycin, rifabutin, and clofazimine), which targets bacterial protein synthesis and RNA transcription [RedHill Biopharma, 2024, Clinical Trial Data]. While MAP is a pathogen rather than a single molecular target, its unique metabolic pathways and cell wall components provide various specific enzymatic targets for drug development.

Other names

Mycobacterium paratuberculosisJohne's bacillusM. avium subsp. paratuberculosis

Inhibition of bacterial RNA polymerase, 50S ribosomal subunit, and cell wall synthesis [RedHill Biopharma, 2024].