Tuberculosis (TB) has become the most important infectious disease to see resurgence worldwide. In 2014, there were 9.6 million documented cases worldwide with a mortality of almost 1.5 million (Global Tuberculosis Report 2014). One of the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations was the reversal of the TB epidemic, which has been achieved worldwide with an 18% lower incidence of TB globally compared to the incidence in the year 2000. Though efficient intervention has brought down the relative incidence and mortality of TB globally, the fact remains that one third of the world population has latent TB infection, and 10% of people with latent TB infection develop active TB at some point in their life (The Facts about Tuberculosis 1995). Risk factors that prompt the reactivation of latent TB into active TB are a compromised immune system, HIV, malnutrition, and use of tobacco. In developing and underdeveloped economies, malnutrition and undernutrition play a major role in subverting the immune system and reactivating the latent TB infection. Undernutrition is one of the major factors in India and Southeast Asia leading to an increase in TB infections. Once tuberculosis sets in, it leads to an increase in metabolism and a decrease in appetite that compounds the already present malnutrition. Drawing on previous studies, we have aimed at understanding the relationship between malnutrition and TB infection and making minimal recommendations for corrective action.

HighlightsThe kinetics of IgM and IgG post scrub typhus infection remain elusive.Scrub typhus patients were followed up to study antibody kinetics.IgM remained above the threshold for 12 months.IgG reached a peak at 10 months and remained above the threshold for 36 months.Paired IgM samples are required for accurate diagnosis.

Nephrotoxicity is a rare complication caused by anti-tuberculosis therapy-induced oxidative stress. The Cyanobacterium Spirulina fusiformis Voronikhin belonging to Oscillatoriaceae family is used traditionally as a source of antioxidants against oxidative stress. We aimed to investigate the efficacy of S. fusiformis in modifying isoniazid (INH) Histological examination of kidneys supported these findings. Results of the in silico analyses showed that selected active components of S. fusiformis interact with LXR and FXR and could be a possible mechanism of action. S. fusiformis rendered protection against anti-tuberculosis drugsinduced oxidative stress in kidney tissues of rats. ARTICLE HISTORY

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Scrub typhus is a highly prevalent bacterial infection in India and South Asia that is caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi. The innate immune response to infections is modulated by Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and heat shock proteins (HSPs). This study was done to assess the prevalence and possible association of TLR and HSP polymorphisms in scrub typhus. TLR4 Asp299Gly, TLR4 Thr399Ile, TLR2 Arg753Gln and HSP70-2 A1267G are single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that may modulate their activities, and these SNPs were assessed in 137 scrub typhus patients and 134 controls by PCR restriction fragment length polymorphism. We found that the two TLR4 mutations, TLR4 D299G and TLR4T399I, were present in 19.5% and 22% of the study population, respectively, and was in significant linkage disequilibrium with a D' of 0.8. The TLR2 mutation was found to be rare, whereas the HSP A>G mutation was very common (77.5%). Compared with the controls, the prevalence of heterozygous genotype of the TLR4D299G SNP, but not any of the other SNPs, was significantly higher among scrub typhus patients. Further studies using a larger sample size and more candidate genes may better enable in determining the role of these associations in susceptibility and severity of scrub typhus.