Infectious diseases of man and animals caused by mycobacterium species and characterized by formation of tubercles and caseous necrosis in the tissues; any organ may be affected but in man the lung is the major seat of the disease and the usual portal through which the infection reaches other organs.

Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body...