Distribution of IS1311 and IS1245 in Mycobacterium avium subspecies revisited

We demonstrated that IS1245 is not present in Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis by restriction fragment length polymorphism and that the designated three-banded bird pattern of IS1245 in M. avium subsp. avium consists of one copy of IS1245 and two copies of IS1311. Cross hybridization between the two elements can be avoided by using more specific probes.