Mycobacterium aviumsubspeciesparatuberculosisbacteremia in type 1 diabetes mellitus: an infectious trigger?

Mycobacterium aviumsubspeciesparatuberculosis(MAP) is the established cause of paratuberculosis in ruminants (i.e., Johne disease). The bacterium is shed in the milk of infected cows and survives pasteurization. Recently, an association between MAP and Crohn disease has been suggested, wherein MAP has been found to persist in a cell wall–deficient form, escaping clearance by the host immune system.