Construction of a Subcutaneous Fat Transplantation Model Infected with Mycobacterium

Introduction: Fat grafting procedures for body contouring and cosmetic reconstruction have received widespread attention. Methods: In recent years, there has been an increase in post-fat grafting infections caused by Mycobacterium abscessus (MA), and there is a lack of representative and standardized murine models of infection; therefore, there has been limited research on the treatment of post-fat grafting MA infections. To overcome this challenge, we constructed an MA infection model after fat grafting. Results: By evaluating skin charge, dermatopathology, and inflammatory markers, we found that the fat graft + 1 × 109 CFU/mL bacterial suspension infection group had significant inflammatory symptoms and elevated inflammatory factors on postoperative day 10. Conclusion: The model construction process was simple and reproducible, which paves the way for further studies on the impact of MA pathogenesis and the efficacy of new treatments.