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Updated: Feb 9, 2026

Imaging Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Mice with Reporter Enzyme Fluorescence
Published on: February 26, 2018
Immunological mechanisms of human resistance to persistent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection
Jason D Simmons1, Catherine M Stein2,3, Chetan Seshadri4
1Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA. jasonds@uw.edu.
Abstract:
Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a leading cause of mortality worldwide and establishes a long-lived latent infection in a substantial proportion of the human population. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that some individuals are resistant to latent M. tuberculosis infection despite long-term and intense exposure, and we term these individuals 'resisters'. In this Review, we discuss the epidemiological and genetic data that support the existence of resisters and propose criteria to optimally define and characterize the resister phenotype. We review recent insights into the immune mechanisms of M. tuberculosis clearance, including responses mediated by macrophages, T cells and B cells. Understanding the cellular mechanisms that underlie resistance to M. tuberculosis infection may reveal immune correlates of protection that could be utilized for improved diagnostics, vaccine development and novel host-directed therapeutic strategies.
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