Immunological options for the treatment of tuberculosis: evaluation of novel therapeutic approaches

Abstract

The emergence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis strains and the coinfection with HIV, together with advances in immunology, have led to renewed interest regarding ways to exploit the immune responses against Mycobacterium tuberculosis therapeutically. Here we review the fundamentals of tuberculosis therapy in view of the epidemiological and clinical challenges, and explore the experience with immune-based therapies for the treatment of active tuberculosis. These immune-based therapies are discussed here with the aim of assessing their potential use as adjuncts to chemotherapy.

Keywords::

• antibodies
• cytokines
• immunotherapy
• tuberculosis

Acknowledgements

Achkar, Casadevall and Glatman-Freedman are Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) investigators at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Achkar is supported in part by a CFAR pilot grant and NIH grant AI067665. Casadevall is supported in part by the Northeast Biodefense Center U54-AI057158-Lipkin.