Scientists have shown that co-infection with a helminth exacerbates lung inflammation and disease severity in tuberculosis. This co-infection pattern may help in designing further anti-tubercular drug and vaccine. About one-third of the world’s population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), leading to 1.4 million deaths and 8.8 million new reported cases of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) worldwide every year. Although most Mtb-infected people have latent TB (LTB) and remain asymptomatic, they have a 10% lifetime risk of developing active TB (ATB).
Our immune response has two distinct roles T-helper type 1 (Th1) response in anti-inflammatory that prevents inflammation and T helper 2 (Th2) response which is pro-inflammatory that induces inflammation. Mtb infection induces a potent Th1 immune response in the host, which contributes to protective immunity. Interestingly,…
