Plant-based drug can fight resistant TB

• New compounds work by disabling a protective enzyme produced by TB bugs
• The compounds originate from the ellipticine plant-alkaloid family
• Both dormant and highly drug-resistant TB bugs can be dealt with

BANGALORE, December 20, 2015 - Scientists from India and the US say they have discovered a group of compounds that can kill Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for causing tuberculosis (TB), by disabling a major defence mechanism it uses to survive in the human body.