The Saga of Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is one of the oldest infectious diseases that has challenged the human race over the centuries. In recent years, TB has been a major health burden. Because of developing drug resistance to treatment options available, we are losing our grip on the control of tuberculosis. This has a huge economic impact on already compromised countries and societies. The World Health Organization (WHO) has committed to eradicating Mycobacterium tuberculosis by the year 2050. It becomes important for us to understand the history and current scenario that will enable us to develop a strategy to fight the disease in the community and to gain victory over this perilous pathogen.

 

As per the hypothesis, Mycobacterium originated more than 150 million years ago. It was documented that an early progenitor of Mycobacterium might have infected humans in East Africa around 3 million years ago. The common African ancestor emerged about 35,000–15,000 years ago. Those early African migrants carried tuberculosis with them and reached Europe and Asia. Natural selection of this common ancestor gave modern strains of M. tuberculosis about 20,000–15,000 years ago. The history of tuberculosis is vast, but let’s enrich ourselves with a glimpse of its evolution.

 

References

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2. H. Herzog, Basel. History of Tuberculosis. Respiration 1998; 65:5–15.

3. John Frith. History of Tuberculosis. Part 1 – Phthisis, consumption and the White Plague. Journal of Military and Veterans’ Health 2014;22(2):29-35.

4. John Frith. History of Tuberculosis. Part 2 – the Sanatoria and the Discoveries of the Tubercle Bacillus. Journal of Military and Veterans’ Health 2014;22(2):36-41.

5. T M Daniel. The history of tuberculosis. Respiratory Medicine 2006; 100: 1862–1870.

6. I. Barberis et al. The history of tuberculosis: from the first historical records to the isolation of Koch’s bacillus. J prev med hyg 2017; 58: e9-e12.