Yann Guérardel

TL;DR: It is shown that M. tuberculosis forms biofilms with specific environmental and genetic requirements distinct from those for planktonic growth, which contain an extracellular matrix rich in free mycolic acids, and harbour an important drug‐tolerant population that persist despite exposure to high levels of antibiotics.

TL;DR: Evidence is provided that mycobacterial LM bear structural motifs susceptible to interact with different pattern recognition receptors with pro- or anti-inflammatory effects, and the ultimate response of the host may therefore depend on the prevailing LM or LAM in the myCobacterial envelope and the local host cell receptor availability.

TL;DR: The ratio of LAM to LM in the cell wall of mycobacteria may be an important determinant of virulence, and enzymes that modify LM could provide targets for development of antituberculosis drugs and for derivation of attenuated strains of M. tuberculosis.

TL;DR: Evidence is provided that LMs isolated from different mycobacterial species participate in the immunomodulation of the infected host and that the d-mannan core of this glycolipid is essential for this function, supporting the hypothesis that the presence of an arabinan in LAMs prevents the interaction of these glycolIPids with TLR2/CD14 receptors.

TL;DR: The structural determination of these important modulins in Mycobacterium chelonae, a fast growing pathogenic mycobacterial species, suggests that the inositol phosphate capping may represent the major cytokine-inducing component of LAMs.