Multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis: molecular perspectives

• Published in: Emerging infectious diseases Vol. 4; no. 2; pp. 195 - 209
• Main Authors: Rattan, A, Kalia, A, Ahmad, N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 01.06.1998
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Antitubercular Agents - pharmacology; Antitubercular Agents - therapeutic use; Base Sequence; Drug Resistance, Microbial - genetics; Drug Resistance, Multiple - genetics; Humans; India; Molecular Sequence Data; Mutation; Mycobacterium tuberculosis - drug effects; Mycobacterium tuberculosis - genetics; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant - drug therapy; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant - microbiology; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant - prevention & control
• ISSN: 1080-6040; 1080-6059
• DOI: 10.3201/eid0402.980207

Multidrug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis seriously threaten tuberculosis (TB) control and prevention efforts. Molecular studies of the mechanism of action of antitubercular drugs have elucidated the genetic basis of drug resistance in M. tuberculosis. Drug resistance in M. tuberculosis is attributed primarily to the accumulation of mutations in the drug target genes; these mutations lead either to an altered target (e.g., RNA polymerase and catalase-peroxidase in rifampicin and isoniazid resistance, respectively) or to a change in titration of the drug (e.g., InhA in isoniazid resistance). Development of specific mechanism-based inhibitors and techniques to rapidly detect multidrug resistance will require further studies addressing the drug and drug-target interaction.