Numerical Classification of 280 Strains of Slowly Growing Mycobacteria

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Abstract
Numerical classification of 280 strains of slowly growing mycobacteria was carried out by testing each strain for 76 characters. The following 14 clusters were observed: 1. M. tuberculosis, M. bovis, M. africanum and M. microti; 2. M. haemophilum; 3. M. ulcerans; 4. M. xenopi; 5. M. kansasii; 6. M. szulgai; 7. M. gordonae; 8. M. gastri; 9. M. avium, M. intracellulare, M. scrofulaceum and M. asiaticum; 10. M. marinum; 11. M. simiae; 12. M. nonchromogenicum, M. novum, M. terrae and M. triviale; 13. M. malmoense; 14. M. shimoidei. The clusters composed of M. tuberculosis, M. bovis, M. africanum and M. microti, of M. avium, M. intracellulare, M. scrofulaceum and M. asiaticum and of M. nonchromogenicum, M. novum, M. terrae and M. trivale appeared to be reduced to a single species each. The names having priority for each species should be M. tuberculosis, M. avium and M. nonchromogenicum, respectively, but the clusters may, in practice, be called the M. tuberculosis series (complex), the M. avium series (complex) and the M. nonchromogenicum series (complex). The type species of these series are M. tuberculosis, M. avium and M. nonchromogenicum, respectively. These series were characterized in this study.

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