New Approaches Against Drug-Resistant M. tuberculosis

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Editorial

15 April 2021

Editorial: New Approaches Against Drug-Resistant M. tuberculosis

Yossef Av-Gay

,

Giorgia Mori

and

Maria Rosalia Pasca

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Editors

3

Maria Rosalia Pasca

Department of Biology and Biotechnology Lazzaro Spallanzani, University of Pavia

University of British Columbia

The University of Queensland

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Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious and deadly disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacillus, which has reached pandemic proportions. About 1.7 billion people (23% of the world’s population) are estimated to have a latent TB infection, and are thus at risk of developing active TB disease during their lifetime. According to the World Health Organization, in 2018 it was estimated that there were 10 million new TB cases and 1.5 million deaths globally.

In recent years, TB plague incidence hasn’t decreased because of the emergence and spread of M. tuberculosis drug-resistant strains. Facing drug-resistant TB is, without any doubts, more complicated as the antituberculars against it are poorly tolerated. This is due to their increased toxicity and reduced activity.

After several decades of near inactivity in TB drug discovery research, a promising pipeline has emerged in the last years, showing some new compounds and repurposed drugs. These are in different stages of preclinical and clinical development, even though some mechanisms of drug resistance are already known.

Considering all these aspects, TB drug discovery research must continue in order to fight the spread of drug resistant M. tuberculosis strains through the development of new antitubercular compounds with novel mechanisms of action.

Unlike this Research Topic (see link) which is focused on management and treatment of M. tuberculosis infection, presented Research Topic aims to collect papers with the focus on M. tuberculosis drug resistance mechanisms as well as on new antitubercular strategies. Updates about new mechanisms of drug resistance among MDR and XDR M. tuberculosis strains will be especially welcomed.

Contributors are welcome to submit Original research and Review articles concerning the following (or similar) aims of this Research Topic:

• Novel mechanisms of M. tuberculosis drug resistance;
• New antitubercular drugs with novel mechanisms of action (e.g. TB drug targets, prodrugs, etc);
• New approaches to fight drug resistant TB (e.g. compounds active also against M. tuberculosis non-replicant cells, antivirulence compounds, etc);
• Host targeted therapies;
• Repurposed drugs against M. tuberculosis.

We hope that the new interesting findings of this Research Topic will steer the development of novel antitubercular drugs and contribute in the fight against this worrisome pathogen.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious and deadly disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacillus, which has reached pandemic proportions. About 1.7 billion people (23% of the world’s population) are estimated to have a latent TB infection, and are thus at risk of developing active TB disease during their lifetime. According to the World Health Organization, in 2018 it was estimated that there were 10 million new TB cases and 1.5 million deaths globally.

In recent years, TB plague incidence hasn’t decreased because of the emergence and spread of M. tuberculosis drug-resistant strains. Facing drug-resistant TB is, without any doubts, more complicated as the antituberculars against it are poorly tolerated. This is due to their increased toxicity and reduced activity.

After several decades of near inactivity in TB drug discovery research, a promising pipeline has emerged in the last years, showing some new compounds and repurposed drugs. These are in different stages of preclinical and clinical development, even though some mechanisms of drug resistance are already known.

Considering all these aspects, TB drug discovery research must continue in order to fight the spread of drug resistant M. tuberculosis strains through the development of new antitubercular compounds with novel mechanisms of action.

Unlike this Research Topic (see link) which is focused on management and treatment of M. tuberculosis infection, presented Research Topic aims to collect papers with the focus on M. tuberculosis drug resistance mechanisms as well as on new antitubercular strategies. Updates about new mechanisms of drug resistance among MDR and XDR M. tuberculosis strains will be especially welcomed.

Contributors are welcome to submit Original research and Review articles concerning the following (or similar) aims of this Research Topic:

• Novel mechanisms of M. tuberculosis drug resistance;
• New antitubercular drugs with novel mechanisms of action (e.g. TB drug targets, prodrugs, etc);
• New approaches to fight drug resistant TB (e.g. compounds active also against M. tuberculosis non-replicant cells, antivirulence compounds, etc);
• Host targeted therapies;
• Repurposed drugs against M. tuberculosis.

We hope that the new interesting findings of this Research Topic will steer the development of novel antitubercular drugs and contribute in the fight against this worrisome pathogen.

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Editors

Maria Rosalia Pasca

Department of Biology and Biotechnology Lazzaro Spallanzani, University of Pavia

University of British Columbia

The University of Queensland

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Frontiers in Microbiology

Antimicrobials, Resistance and Chemotherapy

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