Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7HX, UK.
Immunobiology. 2012 Mar;217(3):363-74. doi: 10.1016/j.imbio.2011.07.008. Epub 2011 Jul 18.
One-third of the global human population harbours Mycobacterium tuberculosis in dormant form. This dormant or latent infection presents a major challenge for global efforts to eradicate tuberculosis, because it is a vast reservoir of potential reactivation and transmission. This article explains how the pathogen evades the host immune response to establish a latent infection, and how it emerges from a state of latency to cause reactivation disease. This review highlights the key factors responsible for immune evasion and reactivation. It concludes by identifying interesting candidates for drug or vaccine development, as well as identifying unresolved questions for the future research.
全球有三分之一的人口携带有处于休眠状态的结核分枝杆菌。这种休眠或潜伏感染对全球消除结核病的努力构成了重大挑战，因为它是潜在再激活和传播的巨大储存库。本文解释了病原体如何逃避宿主免疫反应以建立潜伏感染，以及它如何从潜伏状态中出现导致再激活疾病。这篇综述强调了负责免疫逃避和再激活的关键因素。最后，它确定了药物或疫苗开发的有趣候选者，并确定了未来研究中未解决的问题。
