Mankind has been confronted with TB since ancient times. Modern strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis seem to have originated from a common ancestor about 15,000-20,000 years ago. Archeological evidence of early TB has been found in for example Egyptian and Peruvian mummies, and was already described in classical Greece as phthisis. In 19th century Western Europe,…
Antibiotic treatment against TB became successful for the first time in 1944 with the discovery of streptomycin. By the 1970s, the addition of rifampicin to a regimen of streptomycin, isoniazid, and ethambutol allowed a shortening of treatment of 12-18 months to 9-12 months. In the 1980s, the replacement of streptomycin with pyrazinamide yielded more rapid…
In an effort to improve treatment outcomes and shorten treatment duration, TB drug research has been aiming at redevelopment of existing first-line TB drugs (high dose rifamycins and pyrazinamide) and repurposing of available antibiotics (e.g. moxifloxacin, linezolid and clofazimine), alongside the development of new compounds (e.g. bedaquiline, delamanid, SQ109). The advantage of redeveloping and repurposing…
