Shaikh A, et al. - Researchers tested the feasibility of using bioaerosols retained on tuberculosis (TB) patients’ masks for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific RNA. They recruited 33 adults with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) at diagnosis before GeneXpert confirmation between April 2017 and February 2019 from private TB clinics in Mumbai, India. The presence of M. tuberculosis-specific RNA was confirmed in mask samples, including masks of two patients with unproductive sputum via quantitative PCR targeting rpoB, sigA, 16S and fgd1 and sequencing of rpoB. Outcomes supported the utility of patient masks to sample bioaerosols for detection of viable M. tuberculosis. These outcomes have translational value in TB diagnosis and monitoring the variations in M. tuberculosis between and within patients that are useful for assessing infectiousness and response to treatment.