Recent Developments in Mycobacterial Research

Dear Colleagues,

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the etiological agent for tuberculosis (TB), causes significant morbidity and mortality to human health. TB is considered one of the oldest diseases recorded in the history of mankind, dating back thousands of years. It is estimated that approximately one-quarter of the world's population is infected with latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis (LTBI). Until 2019, TB was one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide and the number one cause of infectious disease deaths worldwide with a rising mortality. Documented incidence in 2020 showed a 20% decrease in TB diagnoses, which is suspected to be the product of many factors. Some of these factors may include reduced access to diagnostic, treatment, and preventative services and misdiagnosis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Tuberculosis Report 2021 has speculated that the COVID-19 pandemic has reversed years of progress in the effort to globally eradicate TB. Drug-resistant TB continues to be a threat, making up a statistically significant number of cases. For instance, 132,222 multidrug- and rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (MDR/RR-TB) and 25,681 extensive and pre-extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB and pre-XDR-TB, respectively) were reported globally in 2020, and 150,359 people in total were enrolled in MDR/RR-TB treatment worldwide. TB leads to structural and immunological lung complications, including granuloma formation, fibrosis, and T cell exhaustion; less is known about the disease course when coinfection with SARS-CoV-2 is present. Past and present research demonstrates that IL-10, TNF-α, IFN class I–III, TGF-β, IL-35, and regulatory T cells (T-regs) are all important contributors of the characteristics of the host response to Mtb infection.

This Special Issue invites cutting-edge research findings and reviews on the following:

• Recent advances in the understanding of the host immune responses against tuberculosis infection;
• The pathogenesis of tuberculosis;
• Novel therapies for tuberculosis;
• The prevention of tuberculosis;
• Novel diagnosis for tuberculosis;
• COVID-related disruptions in managing tuberculosis.

We look forward to receiving your submissions.

Prof. Dr. Vishwanath Venketaraman
Guest Editor

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• Mycobacterium tuberculosis
• mycobacterial
• host immune responses