Can the addition of immunotherapy to standard antibiotic treatment improve tuberculosis therapy?

In a February issue of the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology article, researchers report that in a mouse model of pulmonary tuberculosis, combining three clinically approved immunotherapy agents (all–trans–retinoic acid, 1,25(OH)2–vitamin D3, and alpha–galactosylceramide) with three antibiotics (isoniazid, rifampicin, and pyrazinamide) resulted in lower mycobacterial loads after five weeks of treatment and significantly reduced relapse after a 13–week course of treatment, compared to antibiotic treatment alone.

The researchers also analyzed cellular changes and cytokine expression and found that mice being treated with immunotherapy as well as antibiotics showed reduced accumulation of immature myeloid cells in the lungs and increased TNF–alpha protein levels.