Tuberculosis (TB) has surpassed COVID-19 as the deadliest infectious disease worldwide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
In 2023, around 10.8 million people were diagnosed with TB, and 1.25 million died from the disease.
TB spreads through the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or speaks.
Currently, TB is treated with antibiotics developed in the 1950s and 1960s.
However, some of the bacteria causing TB have mutated, leading to antimicrobial resistance, which the WHO has identified as a major global public health threat.
The disease primarily affects the lungs, with infected individuals releasing bacteria into the air, where others can inhale the droplets and develop the disease.
Professor Antje Blumenthal from the University of Queensland explained that a quarter of the global population carries the bacteria that cause TB, but not everyone will develop the disease.
Blumenthal emphasized that TB bacteria have coexisted with humans for thousands of years, making them highly adapted to survive in the human body.
TB treatment currently requires a lengthy course of antibiotics, often taking several months or more than a year to complete.
Blumenthal stressed the need for new knowledge and strategies to develop faster treatments with fewer side effects, potentially involving new antibiotics or methods to boost the body’s immune response.
She hopes that one day, these new treatments could be combined with existing antibiotics to make TB treatment more effective and efficient.
