VOL.06    2021.07.21

편집자 한마디!

국내외 결핵(TB) 뉴스

학술연구자료

최근 연구 결과에 의하면 결핵에 걸린 사람이 그렇지 않은 사람보다 우울증을 앓을 가능성이 3배 이상 높으며, 정신질환이 면역체계에 영향을 미쳐 잠재적 결핵 위험을 높일 수 있다고 합니다. 코로나로 인해 지역별 거리두기 단계가 올라가 코로나 블루도 더 심각해 지리라 생각하니, 호흡기 건강에 못지않게 정신건강도 챙겨야 되는 한여름이 아닐까 생각됩니다. 모두들 몸과 마음의 건강 잘 챙기시기를 바라며, 아래 내용 가볍게 읽어 주시면 감사드리겠습니다.

The World Health Organization (WHO) released an update to its consolidated guidelines on the detection of TB and drug-resistant TB. The guidelines are accompanied by an operational handbook to facilitate rapid implementation and roll out of rapid molecular tests by national TB programs, ministries of health and technical partners.

A comprehensive assessment of the Active TB Drug Safety Monitoring and Management (aDSM) database was convened by the World Health Organization's team on Pharmacovigilance, and the Global TB Program in collaboration with the Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases in 2020, in order to better understand the benefit and risk profiles of four TB medicines bedaquiline, delamanid, clofazimine and linezolid for their use in treatment of multidrug-resistant TB. The outcomes of the assessment can be read here.

To support national and global efforts to increase access to and the affordability of TB care and treatment, the World Health Organization (WHO), together with UNICEF, UNAIDS and Unitaid, is inviting manufacturers of selected pharmaceutical products to submit expressions of interest for product evaluation to the WHO Prequalification Unit. For detailed information, click here.

WHO has updated its lists of top 30 high burden countries for TB, MDR-TB and TB/HIV. The lists will be current until 2025. The main changes compared with the previous lists for 2016-2020 are:

WHO is also establishing a “global TB watch list” of Cambodia, Zimbabwe and the Russian Federation initially, since they still warrant continued attention and will remain a priority in terms of support from WHO. In future, other countries may be considered for inclusion – for example, based on evidence about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on TB services and disease burden.

WHO has released its first Catalogue of mutations in the M.tb genome complex and their association with drug resistance. Areas for future research are also outlined. Regular updates are planned. The catalogue:

WHO has issued a public call for individual patient data on treatment of MDR-TB. This is the start of the process to update the treatment guidelines published a year ago. Full details of the request are available here. The call is for individual patients’ data on bacteriologically-confirmed MDR/RR-TB patients, including MDR/RR-TB, MDR/RR-TB with additional resistance to second-line drugs or pre-XDR-TB, XDR-TB with the following specifics:

Experts from the Stop TB Partnership, researchers, and civil society representatives called on world leaders to deliver new, effective, safe, equitable, and affordable TB vaccines by 2025. On the 100th anniversary of the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, currently the only vaccine in existence against TB, the group of experts pointed to the funding gap needed to achieve this goal. View the BCG campaign toolkit here and help spread the word by sharing the campaign materials on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and reaching out to political leaders.

To advance TB science, a new consortium of 30 partners from 13 countries has officially launched. The partnership, called UNITE4TB, will accelerate the development of new TB drug regimens as part of the Innovative Medicines Initiative, a public-private European Research & Development Consortium. Source: TB Alliance

The results of ZeNix, a Phase 3 clinical trial that took place in 11 sites across Georgia, Moldova, Russia, and South Africa, revealed that the 6-month BPaL treatment regimen (bedaquiline, pretomanid and linezolid) remains effective against highly drug-resistant strains of TB with either reduced dosage or duration of the linezolid component of the regimen.

"Good news in the world of TB has been in short supply this year. In just 18 months, the COVID-19 pandemic and the measures taken to address it erased some 12 years of significant and measurable progress against TB." Dr Lucica Ditiu, Executive Director of the Stop TB Partnership, reflects on the perspective of ending TB and HIV by 2030 in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Stop TB Partnership will use this this year’s Kochon Prize (worth US$65,000) to recognise efforts to maintain TB services in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s seeking nominations by 30 July. It wants to hear about Individuals, networks, organizations, and national TB programmes who have identified, mitigated, and overcome the barriers posed by COVID-19 to ensure the provision of TB diagnosis, treatment, care, and support services, demonstrating determination, innovation, and a shared sense of humanity.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), working with the National Health Service England (NHSE), has launched a 5-year action plan to drive down TB cases in England, enabling the UK to meet its commitment to the World Health Organization End TB Strategy and eliminate TB in England by 2035.

July marks the 100-year anniversary of the Bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccine (BCG), still the only approved vaccine against TB. More than a dozen vaccines for TB are currently being tested in clinical trials: some use whole bacteria as BCG does, while others deliver protein subunits or genetic material carried by viral vectors. The Scientist reports on the discovery and shortcomings of BCG as well as on the new TB vaccines on the horizon.

The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, in collaboration with the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, has updated material that supports teaching and learning on TB in children and adolescents. The training package contains teaching modules on: epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of TB and drug-resistant TB, TB in particular high-risk groups, and programmatic aspects and monitoring & evaluation considerations. To access the training, click here.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria signed a cooperation and financing agreement to implement 10 strategic initiatives to accelerate the end of AIDS, TB and malaria as epidemics and strengthen systems for health. The new agreement will cover the 2021-2023 implementation period.

The 52nd Union World Conference on Lung Health will take place virtually on 19-22 October 2021. The Community Connect is an area where representatives from the community can share, experience and develop ideas and projects around 4 tracks related to lung health and non-communicable diseases. It is set to inspire, engage and give a voice to the community. Organizations or community initiatives interested in joining the Community Connect can now apply. For detailed instructions how to apply, click here.

Scientists determined the detailed structure of a bacterial protein complex critical for TB infection. The discovery could also help scientists to develop new TB vaccines.

Praedicare Inc., a contract research organisation which uses pre-clinical laboratory and proprietary mathematical translation models, has received a US $2.8 million grant the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to evaluate novel TB drug regimens that shorten treatment times for the disease

Twelve research projects from the WHO European Region are being funded by the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) to ensure continuity in TB services during the pandemic.

All-cause mortality was found to be higher in men vs women after treatment for TB, according to results from a retrospective cohort study and a meta-analysis published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

A study published in Immunity uncovered how cells infected with TB bacteria can die, and that using new medicines to enhance particular forms of cell death decreased the severity of the disease in a preclinical model. This could provide answers in the desperate search for new TB treatments.

Médecins Sans Frontières have been ordered by the health authorities to suspend medical activities in the Tanintharyi region of Myanmar. TB patients have been treated there since February because of cuts to services in the national TB programme. The BMJ says the order to close clinics could be life threatening (subscribers only)

The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 may have the ability to reactivate dormant TB. In a novel study scientists report in The American Journal of Pathology that infection with a specific coronavirus strain reactivated dormant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in mice.

WHO teams have produced a comprehensive study of the pandemic’s toll on tuberculosis services in WHO’s Europe region. They collated data from 44 member countries which confirmed a substantial decrease in TB notifications in the second quarter of last year.

Scientists writing in Nature describe how they used correlative light, electron, and ion microscopy to investigate how various microenvironments within human macrophages affect the activity of pyrazinamide (PZA), a key antibiotic against TB. Their results showed that efficacy may be affected by the localisation of bacteria at the time of treatment and provided new directions for the design of future antibiotics and combined therapies.

Low-dose amikacin, with appropriate dose adjustment based on adequate monitoring, demonstrated limited toxicity with positive outcomes as a treatment option for MDR-TB, according to the findings of a Canadian retrospective cohort study.

US scientists have published a study of the evidence to date of the recently-approved TB Alliance drug, pretomanid, as a therapeutic option for drug-resistant strains. They observe that risks may include the possibility of infertility through alterations in spermatogenesis and lack of safety and toxicology data in pregnant patients and breastfed infants

Research in Singapore suggests that the common antibiotic, doxycycline, is useful in reducing scarring and accelerating recovery in pulmonary tuberculosis patients

Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Hamburg, say they’ve determined the structure of a bacterial protein complex critical for tuberculosis infection.

Scientists have demonstrated a novel means of diagnosing TB by means of a sticker patch that catches compounds released by the skin. Using an artificial intelligence analysis of these compounds, the scientists were able to provide a quick, non-invasive diagnosis.

The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IJTLD) is the official publication of the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease. It publishes articles on all aspects of lung health. IJTLD July 2021 issue is available here.

RESIST-TB released its June 2021 newsletter with the latest research publications on drug-resistant TB.

고마우신 파트너님께^^
코로나 가운데 건강은 어떠신지요. 팬데믹 이후 얼굴을 뵙지 못한지가 벌써 1년여의 시간이 지났습니다.
모든 것이 곧 정상화 될 것이라는 기대와는 달리 델타 변이로 인해 우리는 또 다시 코로나와의 힘겨운 싸움을 계속해가고 있습니다.
그러나 분명한 것은 우리는 결국 이겨낼 것이라는 사실과 파트너님 곁에는 파트너님의 건강을 함께 염려하며 항상 응원하고 있는 저희가 있다는 사실입니다.
저희 STOP TB Partnership, KOREA는 지난해 창립 10주년을 맞이하였습니다. more +