As the season for vector-borne disease arrives, biologists at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have come up with a novel approach to counter-attack and boost immunity against Tuberculosis, reduce the treatment period, and prevent disease relapse. The new approach uses the pathogen’s defense mechanism against itself to weaken the parasite.
TB is one of the biggest health problems faced across the world with one-third of the population infected by it and nearly 1.74 million deaths annually. In a bid to reduce the treatment duration, which is currently lengthy, and expensive, researchers decided to include a hepatoprotective immunomodulator, Luteolin, as a potential host-directed adjunct to available therapy.
An immunomodulator, according to the National Cancer Institute, is a substance that stimulates the immune system and helps the body fight infections or other diseases. Specific immunomodulating agents, such as monoclonal antibodies, cytokines, and vaccines, affect specific parts of the immune system.
The study published in the journal PLOS Pathogen identifies one such immunomodulator, Luteolin, that enhances immunity and improves central memory T cell responses. “The boosted immune responses permitted the reduction of treatment duration, improved treatment outcome and efficiently prevented disease relapse,” the paper read.
The researchers identified Luteolin as an effective immunomodulator for designing anti-TB immunotherapeutics that can provide better protection. The paper also noted that WHO’s expert consultation on immunotherapeutic interventions for TB has also recommended the inclusion of immunotherapeutics in combating TB to improve treatment efficacy of drug-resistant TB, shorten treatment length, and enhance host immunity after treatment is completed.
The TB research was led by a team of researchers from the Special Centre for Molecular Medicine (SCMM) at JNU, which included Professor Anand Ranganathan and Gobardhan Das, and a team from the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology.
In another research, Ranganathan along with a team of biologists from Shiv Nadar University, the National Institute of Immunology, and the Institute of Science at the Banaras Hindu University identified a way to block the route taken by Plasmodium falciparum, which causes malaria, to enter the Red Blood Cells (RBCs).
Published in the journal Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, the research exploits a green chemistry-based approach to identify two such proteins that the bacteria use to invade the bloodstream. Myosin A and MTIP (Myosin A Tail Interacting Protein) have been found to be aiding the Malaria parasite in clearing its route to invade the host.
The team of researchers is now attacking these two proteins weakening them. Ranganathan’s team joined hands with Professor Shailja Singh’s lab alongside researchers from Shiv Nadar University to identify a new drug target. The study identified Glycoside-2 (GLy-2), which showed strong lethal effects against the invasion.
The latest study can help in improving the efficacy of artemisinin and chloroquine in fighting malaria as the current treatments have been associated with various complications and severe side effects.
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