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Anti-TB drugs can increase susceptibility to Mtb reinfection

Current treatments for tuberculosis are very effective in controlling TB infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. They don't, however, always prevent reinfection. Why this happens is one of the long-standing questions in TB research.

22 Mar 2019

Peptide derived from fungi prevents growth of tuberculosis bacteria

The discovery of the peptide as a possible future antibiotic was made when the researchers screened different antimicrobial peptides' ability to prevent the growth of the tuberculosis bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

4 Mar 2019

Study proposes new approach that cures multidrug-resistant TB in conflict-affected communities

A high proportion of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis cases can be cured in conflict-affected communities with molecular diagnostics, shorter treatment periods and socioeconomic incentives, according to the results of a large, long-term study in the Democratic Republic of Congo led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and Stellenbosch University in South Africa, in collaboration with the DRC National Tuberculosis Program.

14 Feb 2019

Study finds high prevalence of TB infection among Tibetan refugee schoolchildren

In a tuberculosis screening and treatment initiative covering the entire population of Tibetan refugee schoolchildren in northern India, a team directed by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine and the University of Wisconsin says it has found not only a startlingly high prevalence of TB disease and infection, but also a potentially workable strategy to eliminate the disease in a large, high-risk group.

19 Dec 2018

Researchers discover promising new compound against Buruli ulcer

Buruli ulcer - one of the most neglected among the NTDs - is a debilitating and stigmatizing disease. Affecting mainly children in West and Central Africa, the chronic disease results in devastating skin lesions and can lead to permanent disfigurement and long-term disabilities.

18 Dec 2018

New strategy to hinder emergence of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens

With many disease-causing bacteria ratcheting up their shields against current drugs, new tactics are vital to protect people from treatment-resistant infections.

17 Nov 2018

New naturally occurring antibiotic found effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

A naturally occurring antibiotic called kanglemycin A is effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, even in drug-resistant strains, according to an international team of researchers who used chemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, and X-ray crystallography to show how the compound maintains its activity.

21 Sep 2018

Superbugs emerging from skin bacteria on the increase

A new study has shown that some of the sub-strains of the bacteria that commonly live on our skin have become resistant to common infections – or in other words turned into superbugs. Infections with these strains thus could become untreatable with the antibiotics available and may turn life-threatening, warn researchers.

6 Sep 2018

New Cochrane Review assesses accuracy of Xpert in diagnosing extrapulmonary TB

In one-fifth of people with active tuberculosis, the site of disease is outside the lungs. Some forms of extrapulmonary TB, such as TB meningitis, are extremely dangerous, where a rapid diagnosis can make all the difference to a patient.

28 Aug 2018

TB Alliance initiates SimpliciTB to test if new four-drug regimen can treat most types of tuberculosis

TB Alliance has initiated a pivotal clinical trial, SimpliciTB, that will evaluate whether a new four-drug regimen can treat most types of tuberculosis including multidrug-resistant TB more quickly and effectively than currently-available treatments.

28 Aug 2018

New technique may provide continuous country-level surveillance of drug-resistant tuberculosis

Global tuberculosis control and elimination will require detailed real-time information on the location of individuals with the disease, the presence of drug resistance, and the patterns of transmission.

23 Aug 2018

Children with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis have successful treatment outcomes, study shows

The results of a large, international systematic review published in the journal PLOS Medicine show that tuberculosis treatment is successful in children with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. The study was used to inform the World Health Organization guidelines on treatment of MDR-TB in children.

21 Aug 2018

Study reveals lack of access to essential medicines in India

Research has revealed the shocking lack of access to essential medicines in India, despite thousands being approved in an attempt to generate wider availability.

27 Jan 2018

Study suggests vitamin C enhances tuberculosis drugs effectiveness

A new study conducted by researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, proposed the use of vitamin C together with tuberculosis drugs for rapid eradication of the disease-causing pathogens. The studies were carried out on mice and in tissue cultures and the results have been published in the journal of American Society for Microbiology, Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

5 Jan 2018

AIDA project optimizes use of old antibiotics for better patient care

A European consortium of researchers studied five off-patent community and hospital antibiotics with modern methods. They integrated the results of three randomised controlled clinical trials with extensive non-clinical studies.

29 Nov 2017

Researchers tackling deadly TB discuss the way forward in treatment and prevention

Researchers from across the world who are tacking the deadly bacterial disease tuberculosis (TB) attended a symposium at St George's, University of London to discuss the way forward in treatment and prevention.

29 Nov 2017

LSTM researchers find new way to reduce treatment for some parasitic diseases

Researchers from LSTM's Research Centre for Drugs and Diagnostics have found a way of significantly reducing the treatment required for lymphatic filariasis and onchocerciasis from several weeks to seven days. By targeting Wolbachia, a bacterial symbiont that the filarial parasites need to live, the team has discovered a drug synergy that enables effective treatment over a shorter time.

24 Oct 2017

Single protein allows mycobacteria to generate diverse populations and avoid TB drugs, research shows

Subgroups of tuberculosis (TB)-causing bacteria can persist even when antibiotics wipe out most of the overall population. The need to eliminate these persistent subpopulations is one reason why TB treatment regimens are so lengthy.

1 Jun 2017

TB germs' metabolic 'escape pathways' may be neutralized by new drugs to shorten duration of therapy

New research suggests the bacteria that cause tuberculosis alter their metabolism to combat exposure to antimicrobials, and that these metabolic "escape pathways" might be neutralized by new drugs to shorten the troublesome duration of therapy.

31 May 2017

New analysis shows high mortality and financial burden for pulmonary disease due to non-tuberculosis mycobacterium (NTM)

The first European study into the burden of non-tuberculosis mycobacterium pulmonary disease (NTM-PD), published today in the European Respiratory Journal, has revealed that both the 3-year all-cause mortality rate and financial burden for patients with the disease is almost four times higher than a matched control group.

2 May 2017