Abstract
TB is epidemic in many developing countries, owing in part to co-infection
with HIV and the emergence and spread of multidrug-resistant strains of TB
(MDR-TB). The general consensus among infectious disease experts is that the
entire globe will remain at risk for TB epidemics until active TB transmission
is eradicated. But TB drug development faces significant challenges, and for
the past 30 years, the pipeline of novel therapeutics for treatment of TB has
been sparse. Now, however, given various factors--the fact that TB
transmission has been on the rise since the early 1980s, the emerging threat
of MDR-TB, and TB's role as an opportunistic infection in HIV
patients--government agencies, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and
pharmaceutical companies have a renewed interest in developing drugs for TB.
In 2000, several foundations, government agencies, and NGOs established the
Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance). In this report, we
review TB epidemiology, etiology and pathophysiology, resistance patterns, and
treatment approaches, and we highlight challenges and opportunities for the
pharmaceutical industry
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