2024-01-19 07:00:22
A serious infectious disease, one of the deadliest, tuberculosis can become complicated by so-called “drug-resistant” tuberculosis. And if it were now possible to consider an alternative strategy for the treatment of “drug-resistant” tuberculosis ? This is suggested by the conclusions of a new scientific study which highlights a chemical compound with a dual action against this pathology. We take stock.
Tuberculosis and risk of antibiotic resistance
Tuberculosis is one of the deadliest serious infectious diseases. In 2022, it is estimated to have caused 1.3 million deaths worldwide! This disease is caused by bacteria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which most often affects the airways and lungs and is accompanied by symptoms such as coughing, bloody sputum and chest pain. But it can also affect other organs or lodge in a dormant state in certain cells! Transmission of tuberculosis from one person to another occurs easily by dispersal of droplets through the air when the infected person coughs, sneezes or spits.
Due to the diversity of organs that can be affected, tuberculosis is subject to combination therapy. It is treated with four antibiotics for 2 months followed by two antibiotics for 4 months. But that’s without taking into account the patient’s risk of developing antibiotic resistance if they don’t follow their treatment correctly. The bacteria becomes resistant to one or more antibiotics and the patient then develops what is called resistant or “multi-resistant” tuberculosis.
To know ! “Multi-resistant” tuberculosis refers to simultaneous resistance of the bacteria responsible for tuberculosis to the two main effective antibiotics. When the strain is resistant to many more antibiotics, it is called “extra-resistant” tuberculosis.
Or, the treatment of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis is much heavier and longer than that of sensitive tuberculosis because the molecules are less effective. The treatment of multi- or extra-resistant tuberculosis most often combines 5 to 6 antibiotics to which the strain is sensitive for a period of 18 to 24 months!
Read also – Tuberculosis: an increase of 10% in Ile de France
A dual action compound against multi-drug resistant tuberculosis
Aware of this problem, French and German researchers have undertaken to seek an alternative treatment strategy for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis. To carry out their work, they analyzed thousands of chemical molecules using high-throughput technology. The objective? Evaluate their ability to target a tuberculosis virulence factor to block the multiplication of bacteria within human immune cells. This way of proceeding has led scientists to the identification of compounds of interest capable of targeting targets different from those of traditional antibiotics.
By analyzing the mechanism of action of these compounds more closely, the scientists then noticed that some of them had a dual role: attacking the virulence factors of tuberculosis and strengthening the antibiotic effectiveness of ethionamide . Among these compounds, researchers have thus identified a chemical compound called oxadiazole with dual action against drug-resistant tuberculosis :
Blocks the multiplication of bacteria in human immune cells. While boosting the effectiveness of the antibiotic ethionamide. Read also – WHO wants to end tuberculosis by 2030
Towards better management of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis?
Published in the journal Cell Chemical Biology, the results of this work are encouraging in the sense that they open up new perspectives for the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. By targeting two different mechanisms of action, it could therefore be possible to reduce the phenomenon of antibiotic resistance while increasing the effectiveness of traditional antibiotics.
For the authors of this work, combine the fight against virulence factors with the fight against antibiotic resistance “represents an unexplored avenue in the fight against mycobacterial infections”. A discovery that is all the more interesting as it occurs in a worrying global context marked by the emergence of resistant mycobacteria in Asia.
Read also – Soon the end of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis?
Déborah L., Doctor in Pharmacy
Sources
– Drug-resistant tuberculosis: encouraging discovery of an alternative treatment strategy. www.lequotidiendumedecin.fr. Accessed January 15, 2024.
– Discovery of dual-active ethionamide boosters inhibiting the Mycobacterium tuberculosis ESX-1 secretion system. www.cell.com. Consulté le 15 janvier 2024.
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