Patient 2 had been critically ill during carriage of the TB clone with high mucin binders such as strain TBCF10839 (Tümmler et al., 1991; Klockgether et al., 2013), but he recovered after the TB clone had been replaced by the chronic carriage of the PA14 clone (D421) with its poor mucin binders (Tables 2, 3). The gene discussed is MUC5AC; the disease is tuberculosis.