Division of Mycobacterial Research, MRC National Institute for Medical Research, London, UK.
Trends Microbiol. 2011 Oct;19(10):492-500. doi: 10.1016/j.tim.2011.07.002. Epub 2011 Aug 9.
Despite being a curable disease, tuberculosis (TB) killed more people in 2009 than during any previous year in history. Progress in TB research has been slow, and remains burdened by important gaps in our knowledge of the basic biology of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of TB, and its interaction with the human host. Fortunately, major systems biology initiatives have recently been launched that will help fill some of these gaps. However, to fully comprehend TB and control this disease globally, current systems biological approaches will not suffice. The influence of host and pathogen diversity, changes in human demography, and socioeconomic and environmental factors will also need to be considered. Such a multidisciplinary approach might be best described as 'systems epidemiology' in an effort to overcome the traditional boundaries between basic biology and classical epidemiology.
尽管结核病是一种可治愈的疾病,但在 2009 年,它导致的死亡人数比历史上任何一年都多。结核病研究进展缓慢,仍然受到我们对结核分枝杆菌(导致结核病的病原体)的基础生物学及其与人类宿主相互作用的重要知识空白的困扰。幸运的是,最近已经启动了重大的系统生物学计划,这将有助于填补其中的一些空白。然而,要全面了解结核病并在全球范围内控制这种疾病,目前的系统生物学方法还不够。宿主和病原体多样性的影响、人类人口结构的变化以及社会经济和环境因素也需要加以考虑。这种多学科方法可以最好地描述为“系统流行病学”,以努力克服基础生物学和经典流行病学之间的传统界限。