Scientists from the Hackensack Meridian Center for Discovery and Innovation, working with collaborators from across the globe, uncovered the mechanism of action of a novel anti-tuberculosis drug that they have helped develop.

Tuberculosis causes disease in more than 1.5 million children and adolescents (<20 years) globally each year. It is a leading cause of mortality in these age groups in tuberculosis-endemic countries, and adolescents with tuberculosis are also a common source of transmission.

25 June 2021, Geneva | The first WHO Catalogue of mutations in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome complex and their association with drug resistance has been released today. The catalogue fills a critical need, providing a standard reference for the interpretation of mutations conferring resistance to all first-line and a variety of second-line drugs. The report summarises the analysis of over 38,000 isolates with matched data on whole genome sequencing and phenotypic drug susceptibility testing from over 40 countries on 13 anti-TB medicines. The catalogue lists over 17,000 mutations, their frequency and association with or not with resistance.

EMBL Hamburg’s Wilmanns and Kosinski groups have determined the detailed structure of a bacterial protein complex critical for tuberculosis infection.

The 52nd Union World Conference on Lung Health will take place virtually on 19-22 October 2021.

The TB Europe Coalition released a guide to support the National TB Programs implementation in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) region, Transition to people-centred model of TB care: Role of civil society and affected community.

Technion scientists have demonstrated a novel means of diagnosing tuberculosis by means of a sticker patch that catches compounds released by the skin. Using an artificial intelligence (AI) analysis of these compounds, the scientists were able to provide a quick, non-invasive diagnosis. In future implementations, the group plans to integrate the sensors into the patch and use a smartphone to read its results.

A study led by the University of Cape Town has provided new information on the relationship between SARS-CoV-2–specific CD4 response to COVID-19 severity and impact of HIV and TB co-infection.

The World Health Organization (WHO) Global TB Program has initiated a process to undertake scoping work and a systematic review of evidence on TB and vulnerable populations to inform future policy updates and research priorities.

Researchers have discovered that the use of a common antibiotic, doxycycline, in combination with TB drug treatment, reduces the size of lung cavities and accelerates markers of lung recovery. This was done in a trial with 30 pulmonary TB patients.