[2] The strain marinum was first identified by Joseph D. Aronson in 1926 and it is observed as a pathogenic mycobacterium[3] causing tuberculosis-like infections in fish (mycobacteriosis) and skin lesions in humans.

[4] Infection is usually associated either with swimming, preparing sea food, or with keeping or working with aquarium fish.

[4] The bacteria invade macrophages, preventing the fusion of phagosome-lysosome and replicating inside.

A rare case of human infection was detected when a three year old American child was bitten by an iguana in Costa Rica in March 2022.

[5] Initial phylogenetic studies using the gene 16S rDNA sequence data shows M. marinum is close to M. tuberculosis and M.