http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/health_medicine/tuberculosis/ Tuberculosis. Read the latest research news on tuberculosis, including a quick new TB test, new TB treatment options, and the latest news on tuberculosis infections. en-us Sat, 26 May 2012 14:05:01 EDT Sat, 26 May 2012 14:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/health_medicine/tuberculosis/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120522135307.htm Biomedical engineers have developed a microfluidic chip to test for latent tuberculosis. They hope the test will be cheaper, faster and more reliable than current testing for the disease. Tue, 22 May 2012 13:53:53 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120522135307.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120413162343.htm Researchers have determined a possible link between exposure to a component of urban air pollution and a change in the function of immune cells that protect against the bacteria that cause tuberculosis. Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120413162343.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120326160528.htm A two-drug combination is one of the most promising advances in decades for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) — a disease that kills 2 million people annually — a scientist has reported. The treatment, which combines two medications already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), delivers a knockout punch to forms of TB that shrug off other antibiotics. Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:05:05 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120326160528.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120227094132.htm Why is it that Mycobacterium tuberculosis can cause tuberculosis with as little as 10 cells, whereas Vibrio cholerae requires the host to ingest up to tens of millions of cells to cause cholera? This is the question that scientists have just answered. Mon, 27 Feb 2012 09:41:41 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120227094132.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120182924.htm Shortages of key drugs used to fight infections represent a public health emergency and can put patients at risk, according to a new review. Frequent anti-infective shortages can substantially alter clinical care and may lead to worse outcomes for patients, particularly as the development of new anti-infectives has slowed and the prevalence of multidrug-resistant pathogens is increasing. Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:29:29 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120182924.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111228111724.htm A new study using a sophisticated "glass mouse" research model has found that multidrug-resistant tuberculosis is more likely caused in patients by speedy drug metabolism rather than inconsistent doses, as is widely believed. Wed, 28 Dec 2011 11:17:17 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111228111724.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111215141619.htm A new study provides a novel explanation as to why some tuberculosis cells are inherently more difficult to treat with antibiotics. Thu, 15 Dec 2011 14:16:16 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111215141619.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111129151544.htm Scientists evaluating new drug targets against tuberculosis recently validated the preclinical effectiveness of a target that could rapidly eliminate infections and potentially shorten treatment time. The new drug target is a protein called DNA gyrase B, found in bacteria that cause TB infections. Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:15:15 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111129151544.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111128132706.htm Chemists have synthesized a new compound that makes drug-resistant bacteria susceptible again to antibiotics. The compound -- BU-005 -- blocks pumps that a bacterium employs to expel an antibacterial agent called chloramphenicol. The team used a new and highly efficient method for the synthesis of BU-005 and other C-capped dipetptides. Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:27:27 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111128132706.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111107033948.htm The incidence of tuberculosis in the US is reported as being on the decrease, however untreated infected people act as a reservoir for disease. Mon, 07 Nov 2011 03:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111107033948.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101095119.htm Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-AB) was found in the environment of 48 percent of the rooms of patients colonized or infected with the pathogen, according to a new study. Tue, 01 Nov 2011 09:51:51 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101095119.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020024449.htm How best to treat 700,000 tuberculosis patients globally who are HIV positive is the subject of a new study whose authors had previously shown that integrating antiretroviral therapy (ART) concurrently with tuberculosis treatment is preferable to treating the diseases sequentially. The new study finds that the best timing for introducing treatment depends on the patient's immune status. Patients with very low T-cell counts appear to do better with an earlier integration of treatment for HIV. Thu, 20 Oct 2011 02:44:44 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020024449.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111018092346.htm New research may help in the ongoing fight against tuberculosis. Medical researchers have discovered a connection between the development of new lymphoid tissue within the lung and protection against the disease. Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111018092346.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012142034.htm A team of scientists has found that vitamin D plays an essential role in the body's fight against infections such as tuberculosis. Researchers found that the immune system could not be activated effectively to kill the bacteria causing tuberculosis without sufficient levels of vitamin D present. The finding may lead to a new treatment pathway for tuberculosis which is estimated to cause 1.8 million deaths annually. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 14:20:20 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012142034.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011112919.htm Smoking could cause 18 million more cases of tuberculosis worldwide over the next 40 years and 40 million additional deaths. That's the sobering scenario predicted by a new study, if smoking continues at current rates. Tue, 11 Oct 2011 11:29:29 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011112919.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004221116.htm Between 2010 and 2050, smoking could be responsible for 40 million excess deaths from tuberculosis, according to new research. Tue, 04 Oct 2011 22:11:11 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004221116.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111003180430.htm The bacterium that causes tuberculosis has a unique molecule on its outer cell surface that blocks a key part of the body's defense. New research suggests this represents a novel mechanism in the microbe's evolving efforts to remain hidden from the human immune system. The TB bacterium has a molecule on its outer surface called lipomannan that can stop production of an important protein in the body's immune cells that helps contain TB infection and maintain it in a latent state. Mon, 03 Oct 2011 18:04:04 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111003180430.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110920080143.htm A new natural defense mechanism against infections has been demonstrated. Zinc, a heavy metal that is toxic at high doses, is used by the cells of the immune system to destroy microbes such as the tuberculosis bacillus or E. coli. This discovery makes it possible to envisage new therapeutic strategies and test new vaccine candidates. Tue, 20 Sep 2011 08:01:01 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110920080143.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110904140447.htm Researchers say that they have developed a tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidate that proved both potent and safe in animal studies. According to the World Health Organization, TB kills an estimated 1.7 million people each year and infects one out of three people around the globe. With drug-resistant strains spreading, a vaccine for preventing TB is urgently needed. Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:04:04 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110904140447.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110904140320.htm Researchers have developed a potential vaccine against tuberculosis that completely eliminates tuberculosis bacteria from infected tissues in some mice. The vaccine was created with a strain of bacteria that, due to the absence of a few genes, are unable to avoid its host's first-line immune response. Once this first-line defense has been activated, it triggers the more specific immune response that can protect against future infections. Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:03:03 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110904140320.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110823115640.htm Afghan patients treated at a US military hospital in Afghanistan often carry multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, according to a new report. The findings underscore the need for effective infection control measures at deployed hospitals where both soldiers and local patients are treated, the study's authors say. Tue, 23 Aug 2011 11:56:56 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110823115640.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110817022132.htm Researchers have discovered a faster, cheaper method for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB). A major barrier in TB prevention, especially in developing countries, is that diagnosis is slow and costly. Researchers have developed a method which could potentially decrease the time taken to make a diagnosis. Their method is also cheaper than the current fastest methods. Wed, 17 Aug 2011 02:21:21 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110817022132.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110809184141.htm Despite being widely available for sale in low-and-middle income countries, commercial serological tests used to detect active tuberculosis (by identifying antibodies to the tuberculosis-causing bacterium in a blood sample) do not accurately diagnose TB and, furthermore, often test positive when the patient does not have TB (false positive) and test negative when the patient actually has TB (false negative). In addition, as shown in India, the use of such tests is not cost effective as compared to other tests available for TB. Tue, 09 Aug 2011 18:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110809184141.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110803191704.htm The European Respiratory Journal is today (Aug. 4, 2011) publishing the updated guidelines of the World Health Organization that aim to help manage drug-resistant tuberculosis. Wed, 03 Aug 2011 19:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110803191704.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110802133324.htm A new study has identified the recent emergence of a multidrug-resistant strain of Salmonella that has a high level resistance to ciprofloxacin, a common treatment for severe Salmonella infections. Tue, 02 Aug 2011 13:33:33 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110802133324.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110801111740.htm Are you genetically predisposed to tuberculosis? Scientists may now be able to answer this question and doctors may be able to adjust their therapeutic approach based on what they learn. That's because new research suggests that two frequent mutations in an immune system gene called TLR1 are responsible cellular changes that ultimately make us less likely to resist the disease. Mon, 01 Aug 2011 11:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110801111740.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110726190052.htm Two research studies suggest that a new automated DNA test for tuberculosis (Xpert MTB/RIF), which can detect TB within 2 hours and has been endorsed by the World Health Organization, can significantly increase TB detection rate compared to other tests, particularly in HIV positive patients who have a high risk of being infected with TB, including multidrug resistant TB. Tue, 26 Jul 2011 19:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110726190052.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110721172330.htm A recent study into the interactions between aminoglycoside antibiotics and their target site in bacteria used computer simulations to elucidate this mechanism and thereby suggest drug modifications. Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110721172330.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110712174538.htm Two new studies have important implications for the ways in which diagnosis for the endemic infectious disease, tuberculosis (TB), can be done in poor countries. Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:45:45 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110712174538.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110712162818.htm Compared to a standard diagnostic procedure, infants with cystic fibrosis who received treatment based on a diagnostic procedure involving obtaining and culturing fluid samples from the lungs did not have a lower prevalence of lung-damaging infection or structural lung injury at 5 years of age, according to a new study. Tue, 12 Jul 2011 16:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110712162818.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110706195802.htm Scientists have further compelling evidence that new, simpler and shorter treatments with antibiotic drugs could dramatically help prevent tens of millions of people worldwide already infected with the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis, and especially those co-infected with HIV, from developing full-blown TB. Wed, 06 Jul 2011 19:58:58 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110706195802.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110616193740.htm "Super bugs," which can cause wide-spread disease and may be resistant to most, if not all, conventional antibiotics, still have their weaknesses. A team of Canadian scientists discovered that specific mixtures of antimicrobial agents presented in lipid (fatty) mixtures can significantly boost the effectiveness of those agents to kill the resistant bacteria. Thu, 16 Jun 2011 19:37:37 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110616193740.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110531115416.htm Cell phones used by patients and their visitors were twice as likely to contain potentially dangerous bacteria as those of health-care workers, according to a new study. Tue, 31 May 2011 11:54:54 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110531115416.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110524111420.htm New research shows that the use of 18F-FDG positron emission tomography scans can help to determine earlier if treatment for tuberculosis is working or if the disease is multidrug-resistant. Tue, 24 May 2011 11:14:14 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110524111420.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517162020.htm Face masks worn by patients infected with tuberculosis (TB) may be able to significantly cut transmission rates to non-infected patients, according to a new study. The study was conducted in a specialized airborne infections research facility in South Africa, which was designed to allow study of methods to control the spread of TB. Transmission rates were measured using healthy guinea pigs exposed to infected patients. Tue, 17 May 2011 16:20:20 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517162020.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110512091812.htm Disease-causing bacteria can survive for days on wind instruments and may thus contribute to sickness in people who play wind instruments, especially students who share instruments, report researchers. Thu, 12 May 2011 09:18:18 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110512091812.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504183409.htm The private tuberculosis drug market, which has irregular practices that could be driving treatment failures and the emergence of drug-resistant tuberculosis, is now shown to be as large as the public market. Wed, 04 May 2011 18:34:34 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504183409.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110425135504.htm Scientists have identified a key enzyme responsible for destroying lung tissue in tuberculosis. Drugs that inhibit this enzyme are already available, meaning that the finding could lead quickly to new treatments. Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:55:55 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110425135504.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110420211756.htm Current UK procedures to screen new immigrants for tuberculosis fail to detect more than 70 percent of cases of latent infection, according to a new study. Wed, 20 Apr 2011 21:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110420211756.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110412121249.htm The discovery of two genes that encode copper- and sulfur-binding repressors in the hospital terror Staphylococcus aureus means two new potential avenues for controlling the increasingly drug-resistant bacterium, scientists say. Tue, 12 Apr 2011 12:12:12 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110412121249.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110412101320.htm In patients with newly diagnosed tuberculosis, use of a combined 4-drug fixed-dose regimen was found to have comparable outcomes to drugs administered separately, according to a new study. Tue, 12 Apr 2011 10:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110412101320.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110411131350.htm French Canadian voyageurs spread tuberculosis throughout the indigenous peoples of western Canada for over 150 years, yet, strangely enough, it wasn't until the fur traders ceased their forays that epidemics of tuberculosis broke out. Now researchers have puzzled out why. It took a shift in the environment of the infected peoples -- in this case, confinement to reservations -- to create conditions conducive to outbreaks. Mon, 11 Apr 2011 13:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110411131350.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110408075152.htm This year's World Health Day focuses on the growing threat of potentially deadly infections developing resistance to antimicrobial drugs – especially to antibiotics. On this occasion, the European Commission is presenting the promising results of two international research projects which provide new hopes to help and treat people. In the European Union alone, it is estimated that drug resistant infections cause more than 25,000 deaths and €1.5 billion in extra healthcare costs every year. Fri, 08 Apr 2011 07:51:51 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110408075152.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110401121335.htm A potential new experimental diagnostic test able to quickly distinguish individuals with active tuberculosis (TB) from those with latent TB infection has been developed. The new diagnostic system could allow more effective strategies to control the spread of the re-emerging pathology. Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110401121335.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110318121454.htm Scientists have discovered a protein secreted by tuberculosis bacteria that could be a promising new vaccine candidate. The protein could also be used to improve diagnosis of TB. Fri, 18 Mar 2011 12:14:14 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110318121454.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110315192716.htm The standard approach to re-treating tuberculosis (TB) in low and middle income settings is failing, according to new research. Researchers call for improved access to rapid diagnostics for drug resistant TB, second-line TB treatment and antiretroviral HIV therapy. Tue, 15 Mar 2011 19:27:27 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110315192716.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110314100829.htm Alum is an adjuvant (immune booster) used in many common vaccines, and researchers have now discovered how it works. Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:08:08 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110314100829.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110309073940.htm Tuberculosis kills two million people each year. Researchers in Sweden are now presenting new findings that show how the bacterium that causes the disease manages to survive inside the body’s macrophage cells in order eventually to blow them up and spread their infection. Wed, 09 Mar 2011 07:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110309073940.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218112115.htm Researchers in Belgium have improved the efficacy of the vaccine for tuberculosis. The new vaccine affords, as already demonstrated in mice, better protection against the disease. The development of a new tuberculosis vaccine is a priority in the fight against the disease, which claims the lives of 1.7 million people each year. The current vaccine provides only partial protection. Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:21:21 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218112115.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110216132038.htm One in five homeless people with tuberculosis die within a year of their diagnosis, according to a new study. And that number remains unchanged over the last decade despite recommendations calling for greater improvements in prevention and control of tuberculosis in homeless shelters. Wed, 16 Feb 2011 13:20:20 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110216132038.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110215191629.htm Some biologic drugs may be safer than others according to a new systematic review. Biologics are a broad class of drugs based on biological molecules. The drugs are used to reduce inflammation in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. Tue, 15 Feb 2011 19:16:16 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110215191629.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110215081926.htm Scientists have revealed new insights into the workings of an enzyme from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis. The findings present new opportunities for developing organism-specific drugs, which target the pathogen but leave other microorganisms, which are beneficial to us, untouched. Tue, 15 Feb 2011 08:19:19 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110215081926.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110214122633.htm A recent outbreak of tuberculosis in Nunavut, with a population infection rate 62 times the Canadian average, points to a need to rebuild trust in public health to combat the disease, states an editorial. Mon, 14 Feb 2011 12:26:26 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110214122633.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110210123024.htm New findings indicate that the type of medications and the dosage routinely used to treat children with tuberculosis should be individualized to each young patient in order to be effective. Thu, 10 Feb 2011 12:30:30 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110210123024.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110131133003.htm A biophysicist has developed a new method to identify communication pathways connecting distant regions within proteins. With this tool, the researcher has identified a mechanism for cooperative behavior within an entire molecule, a finding that suggests that in the future it may be possible to design drugs that target anywhere along the length of a molecule's communication pathway rather than only in a single location as they do today. Mon, 31 Jan 2011 13:30:30 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110131133003.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110125111002.htm Researchers have found that a new vaccine strategy tested in mice provides stronger, more long-lasting protection from tuberculosis infection than the vaccine currently used in humans, known as BCG. Tue, 25 Jan 2011 11:10:10 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110125111002.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110114155330.htm Identifying tuberculosis patients in Africa using passive methods is leaving many cases undiagnosed, according to researchers who studied case detection methods in HIV-prone western Kenya. Tuberculosis (TB) occurs commonly in men and women with HIV, but in these patients TB can be more difficult to detect. Fri, 14 Jan 2011 15:53:53 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110114155330.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110105194838.htm Genetic resistance to antibiotics is not the only trick bacteria use to resist eradication -- they also have a second defense strategy known as persistence that can kick in. Researchers have now demonstrated for the first time that interplay occurs between the two mechanisms to aid bacterial survival. The findings could lead to novel, effective approaches to treat multi-drug resistant infections. Wed, 05 Jan 2011 19:48:48 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110105194838.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110102202238.htm New research provides compelling evidence of increased lung cancer risk among people with tuberculosis. Sun, 02 Jan 2011 20:22:22 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110102202238.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101221172250.htm The risk of tuberculosis (TB) and latent TB (in which the bacteria that cause TB lie dormant but can reactivate later to cause active TB disease) is higher in the prison population than in the general population, according to new research. Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:22:22 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101221172250.htm