In the framework of the Génopole programme, and with funding support from the Association Raoul Follereau and the World Health Organisation, the Institut Pasteur is sequencing the genome of an epidemic strain of M. ulcerans.

     M. ulcerans is a close relative of M. marinum and M. tuberculosis. This mycobacterium is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, a severe human skin disease that occurs worldwide but predominantly in tropical regions, most notably in many countries throughout central and west Africa. Infection with M. ulcerans results in chronic and debilitating necrotic ulcers, often further complicated by osteomyelytis. Radical surgical excision of infected tissue is currently the only effective treatment.

The M. ulcerans genome has been estimated to be approximately 4.6 Mb in size with a G+C content of around 65%.

Shotgun sequencing is in progress, and a database of contigs is avalable for searching on our BLAST Server.

There are 42,239 reads giving a theoretical coverage of 99.7% of the genome, assuming a genome size of 4.6Mb.

Assembly has begun, and the data for the latest assembly are available. At present, there are a total of 1597 contigs (56%>1kb and 10%>10 kb); a total size of 6.032 Mb.


      Please note that BuruList is currently operating only as a BLAST Server as the genome is still in a preliminary stage of assembly. The assembly database contains unedited automatic assemblies and it will contain some errors and missassemblies. The contig numbers in the databases are not stable, and will vary with each data release.