Using shotgun metagenomics, we identified an imported case of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium leprae in a Filipino resident of Saudi Arabia in 2017. We determined the phylogenomic lineage (3K1) and identified mutations in rpoB and rrs corresponding to the multidrug-resistance phenotype clinically observed. Metagenomics sequencing can be used to identify multidrug-resistant M. leprae.
Keywords: 3K1; Mycobacterium leprae; Philippines; Saudi Arabia; antimicrobial resistance; bacteria; biopsy; drug resistance; imported infectious diseases; indels; leprosy; metagenomics; rpoB; rrs; single-nucleotide polymorphisms; tuberculosis and other mycobacteria.