POTENTIAL USE OF Rv2626c ANTIGEN FOR DEVELOPING THERAPEUTIC VACCINES FOR LATENT TUBERCULOSIS

MARIA PAULA MORELLI; DELFINA PEÑA; AMIANO NICOLAS; JOAQUIN PELLEGRINI; N. TATEOSIAN; ROLANDELLI AGUSTIN; CASTELLO FLORENCIA; ALBERTO LEVI; CASCO, NICOLÁS; DOMINGO J. PALMERO; MARIA MAGDALENA GHERARDI; GARCÍA V.E

Otro; IUIS-Brazil Advanced Course of Vaccines; 2017

Tuberculosis (TB) is, alongside HIV, the leading cause of death from an infectious disease. In fact, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) causes nearly 10 million of new cases and 1.5 million of deaths per year. This global epidemic has been favored by the absence of an effective vaccine, the emergency of multi-resistant strains and the lack of sensitive and quickly diagnostic methods. At present, the only vaccine approved to be used in humans is M. bovis-BCG, which poorly protects adults but is effective in children up to 5-6 years old. An estimated one third of the world population is latently infected with Mtb (LTBI) and at risk of disease reactivation. The existence of such a huge reservoir of the bacteria denotes the need of a rapid diagnosis of TB infection for its early detection and control. Approximately 10% of people with LTBI will develop active TB disease during their lifetime, the majority within the first five years after initial infection. This risk of reactivation is higher in immune-compromised persons, such as in people who are infected with HIV and in persons suffering from other conditions that impair the immune system.