Association between STAT4 gene polymorphism and susceptibility to pulmonary tuberculosis in the Moldavian population.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 4 (STAT4) plays a crucial role in the host immune response against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This study investigates the association between STAT4 gene polymorphisms and pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) risk in the Moldavian population. A total of 272 TB patients and 251 community-matched controls underwent screening for functional single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) rs897200 and rs7574865 in the STAT4 gene. The minor T allele and the TT/CT genotype of rs897200 demonstrated a significant association with reduced pulmonary TB risk (allelic model: adjusted OR = .74, p = .025; log-additive model: adjusted OR = .72, p = .02; and dominant model: adjusted OR = .65, p = .023), indicating a protective effect. Similar associations, characterized by an even more pronounced reduction in risk, were observed among females and late-onset TB patients (>44 years). No significant associations were found for rs7574865. In addition, a combined genotype analysis incorporating 43 SNPs from our previous studies revealed potential associations, such as STAT4 rs897200 CT with IFNG rs2430561 AA (adjusted OR = .36, p = .0025) and STAT4 rs897200 CT with TNFA rs1800629 GA (adjusted OR = .33, p = .0012). This study emphasizes the significant association of STAT4 rs897200 with pulmonary TB risk in the Moldavian population, underscoring its role in the disease development.

Predicting stringent QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus conversions in contacts of tuberculosis patients.

OBJECTIVES: To assess associations between disease severity in index TB patients and QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) results in contacts, and predictors for QFT-Plus conversion in contacts over 6-12 months. METHODS: TB patients (n = 295) and the contacts (n = 1051) were enrolled during 2018-2021 with QFT-Plus performed at baseline and months 6 and 12. A strong CD8 response was defined as TB2 interferon gamma (IFN-γ) response minus TB1 >0.6 IU/ml and stringent conversion as change from QFT-plus negative to high-positive QFT-Plus (TB1 or TB2 IFN-γ responses >0.7 IU/ml). RESULTS: Contacts with index TB patients with sputum smear >1+ was associated with positive QFT-Plus compared to those without (p < 0.001). Contacts with index TB patients with bilateral lung disease were more likely to have strong CD8 responses than those without (p = 0.038). QFT-Plus stringent conversion occurred in 9.7% of contacts over 6-12 months. A TB1 IFN-γ response ≥0.03 IU/ml combined with a TB2 ≥0.06 IU/ml was predictive of a 19-fold increased risk for QFT-Plus stringent conversion in contacts (odd ratio 19.565 [8.484-45.116], p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Bacterial burden and bilateral lung disease of index TB patients were associated with positive QFT-Plus and strong CD8 responses in contacts. TB1 and TB2 IFN-γ responses were synergistically predictive of stringent conversion in contacts.

Economic evaluation of shortened, bedaquiline-containing treatment regimens for rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (STREAM stage 2): a within-trial analysis of a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The STREAM stage 2 trial assessed two bedaquiline-containing regimens for rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis: a 9-month all-oral regimen and a 6-month regimen containing an injectable drug for the first 2 months. We did a within-trial economic evaluation of these regimens. METHODS: STREAM stage 2 was an international, phase 3, non-inferiority randomised trial in which participants with rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis were randomly assigned (1:2:2:2) to the 2011 WHO regimen (terminated early), a 9-month injectable-containing regimen (control regimen), a 9-month all-oral regimen with bedaquiline (oral regimen), or a 6-month regimen with bedaquiline and an injectable for the first 2 months (6-month regimen). We prospectively collected direct and indirect costs and health-related quality of life data from trial participants until week 76 of follow-up. Cost-effectiveness of the oral and 6-month regimens versus control was estimated in four countries (oral regimen) and two countries (6-month regimen), using health-related quality of life for cost-utility analysis and trial efficacy for cost-effectiveness analysis. This trial is registered with ISRCTN, ISRCTN18148631. FINDINGS: 300 participants were included in the economic analyses (Ethiopia, 61; India, 142; Moldova, 51; Uganda, 46). In the cost-utility analysis, the oral regimen was not cost-effective in Ethiopia, India, Moldova, and Uganda from either a provider or societal perspective. In Moldova, the oral regimen was dominant from a societal perspective. In the cost-effectiveness analysis, the oral regimen was likely to be cost-effective from a provider perspective at willingness-to-pay thresholds per additional favourable outcome of more than US$4500 in Ethiopia, $1900 in India, $3950 in Moldova, and $7900 in Uganda, and from a societal perspective at thresholds of more than $15 900 in Ethiopia, $3150 in India, and $4350 in Uganda, while in Moldova the oral regimen was dominant. In Ethiopia and India, the 6-month regimen would cost tuberculosis programmes and participants less than the control regimen and was highly likely to be cost-effective in both cost-utility analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis. Reducing the bedaquiline price from $1·81 to $1·00 per tablet made the oral regimen cost-effective in the provider-perspective cost-utility analysis in India and Moldova and dominate over the control regimen in the provider-perspective cost-effectiveness analysis in India. INTERPRETATION: At current costs, the oral bedaquiline-containing regimen for rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis is unlikely to be cost-effective in many low-income and middle-income countries. The 6-month regimen represents a cost-effective alternative if injectable use for 2 months is acceptable. FUNDING: USAID and Janssen Research & Development.

Evaluation of two short standardised regimens for the treatment of rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (STREAM stage 2): an open-label, multicentre, randomised, non-inferiority trial.

BACKGROUND: The STREAM stage 1 trial showed that a 9-month regimen for the treatment of rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis was non-inferior to the 20-month 2011 WHO-recommended regimen. In STREAM stage 2, we aimed to compare two bedaquiline-containing regimens with the 9-month STREAM stage 1 regimen. METHODS: We did a randomised, phase 3, non-inferiority trial in 13 hospital clinics in seven countries, in individuals aged 15 years or older with rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis without fluoroquinolone or aminoglycoside resistance. Participants were randomly assigned 1:2:2:2 to the 2011 WHO regimen (terminated early), a 9-month control regimen, a 9-month oral regimen with bedaquiline (primary comparison), or a 6-month regimen with bedaquiline and 8 weeks of second-line injectable. Randomisations were stratified by site, HIV status, and CD4 count. Participants and clinicians were aware of treatment-group assignments, but laboratory staff were masked. The primary outcome was favourable status (negative cultures for Mycobacterium tuberculosis without a preceding unfavourable outcome) at 76 weeks; any death, bacteriological failure or recurrence, and major treatment change were considered unfavourable outcomes. All comparisons used groups of participants randomly assigned concurrently. For non-inferiority to be shown, the upper boundary of the 95% CI should be less than 10% in both modified intention-to-treat (mITT) and per-protocol analyses, with prespecified tests for superiority done if non-inferiority was shown. This trial is registered with ISRCTN, ISRCTN18148631. FINDINGS: Between March 28, 2016, and Jan 28, 2020, 1436 participants were screened and 588 were randomly assigned. Of 517 participants in the mITT population, 133 (71%) of 187 on the control regimen and 162 (83%) of 196 on the oral regimen had a favourable outcome: a difference of 11·0% (95% CI 2·9-19·0), adjusted for HIV status and randomisation protocol (p<0·0001 for non-inferiority). By 76 weeks, 108 (53%) of 202 participants on the control regimen and 106 (50%) of 211 allocated to the oral regimen had an adverse event of grade 3 or 4; five (2%) participants on the control regimen and seven (3%) on the oral regimen had died. Hearing loss (Brock grade 3 or 4) was more frequent in participants on the control regimen than in those on the oral regimen (18 [9%] vs four [2%], p=0·0015). Of 134 participants in the mITT population who were allocated to the 6-month regimen, 122 (91%) had a favourable outcome compared with 87 (69%) of 127 participants randomly assigned concurrently to the control regimen (adjusted difference 22·2%, 95% CI 13·1-31·2); six (4%) of 143 participants on the 6-month regimen had grade 3 or 4 hearing loss. INTERPRETATION: Both bedaquiline-containing regimens, a 9-month oral regimen and a 6-month regimen with 8 weeks of second-line injectable, had superior efficacy compared with a 9-month injectable-containing regimen, with fewer cases of hearing loss. FUNDING: USAID and Janssen Research & Development.

Bedaquiline-Pretomanid-Linezolid Regimens for Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

BACKGROUND: The bedaquiline-pretomanid-linezolid regimen has been reported to have 90% efficacy against highly drug-resistant tuberculosis, but the incidence of adverse events with 1200 mg of linezolid daily has been high. The appropriate dose of linezolid and duration of treatment with this agent to minimize toxic effects while maintaining efficacy against highly drug-resistant tuberculosis are unclear. METHODS: We enrolled participants with extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (i.e., resistant to rifampin, a fluoroquinolone, and an aminoglycoside), pre-XDR tuberculosis (i.e., resistant to rifampin and to either a fluoroquinolone or an aminoglycoside), or rifampin-resistant tuberculosis that was not responsive to treatment or for which a second-line regimen had been discontinued because of side effects. We randomly assigned the participants to receive bedaquiline for 26 weeks (200 mg daily for 8 weeks, then 100 mg daily for 18 weeks), pretomanid (200 mg daily for 26 weeks), and daily linezolid at a dose of 1200 mg for 26 weeks or 9 weeks or 600 mg for 26 weeks or 9 weeks. The primary end point in the modified intention-to-treat population was the incidence of an unfavorable outcome, defined as treatment failure or disease relapse (clinical or bacteriologic) at 26 weeks after completion of treatment. Safety was also evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 181 participants were enrolled, 88% of whom had XDR or pre-XDR tuberculosis. Among participants who received bedaquiline-pretomanid-linezolid with linezolid at a dose of 1200 mg for 26 weeks or 9 weeks or 600 mg for 26 weeks or 9 weeks, 93%, 89%, 91%, and 84%, respectively, had a favorable outcome; peripheral neuropathy occurred in 38%, 24%, 24%, and 13%, respectively; myelosuppression occurred in 22%, 15%, 2%, and 7%, respectively; and the linezolid dose was modified (i.e., interrupted, reduced, or discontinued) in 51%, 30%, 13%, and 13%, respectively. Optic neuropathy developed in 4 participants (9%) who had received linezolid at a dose of 1200 mg for 26 weeks; all the cases resolved. Six of the seven unfavorable microbiologic outcomes through 78 weeks of follow-up occurred in participants assigned to the 9-week linezolid groups. CONCLUSIONS: A total of 84 to 93% of the participants across all four bedaquiline-pretomanid-linezolid treatment groups had a favorable outcome. The overall risk-benefit ratio favored the group that received the three-drug regimen with linezolid at a dose of 600 mg for 26 weeks, with a lower incidence of adverse events reported and fewer linezolid dose modifications. (Funded by the TB Alliance and others; ZeNix ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT03086486.).

Synergistic effect of genetic polymorphisms in TLR6 and TLR10 genes on the risk of pulmonary tuberculosis in a Moldavian population.

Polymorphisms in genes that control immune function and regulation may influence susceptibility to pulmonary tuberculosis (TB). In this study, 14 polymorphisms in 12 key genes involved in the immune response (VDR, MR1, TLR1, TLR2, TLR10, SLC11A1, IL1B, IL10, IFNG, TNF, IRAK1, and FOXP3) were tested for their association with pulmonary TB in 271 patients with TB and 251 community-matched controls from the Republic of Moldova. In addition, gene-gene interactions involved in TB susceptibility were analyzed for a total of 43 genetic loci. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis revealed a nominal association between TNF rs1800629 and pulmonary TB (Fisher exact test P = 0.01843). In the pairwise interaction analysis, the combination of the genotypes TLR6 rs5743810 GA and TLR10 rs11096957 GT was significantly associated with an increased genetic risk of pulmonary TB (OR = 2.48, 95% CI = 1.62-3.85; Fisher exact test P value = 1.5 × 10-5, significant after Bonferroni correction). In conclusion, the TLR6 rs5743810 and TLR10 rs11096957 two-locus interaction confers a significantly higher risk for pulmonary TB; due to its high frequency in the population, this SNP combination may serve as a novel biomarker for predicting TB susceptibility.

Genetic variation in TLR pathway and the risk of pulmonary tuberculosis in a Moldavian population.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play a critical role in initiating an immune response to infections. In this study, we examined whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in TLR pathway genes are associated with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in a Moldavian population. Thirty-four SNPs in genes associated with the TLR pathway and two SNPs in ASAP1 gene identified by GWAS were selected for genotyping in 272 patients and 251 community-matched healthy controls. Twenty-nine SNPs passed quality control and were statistically evaluated. SNPs TLR9 rs352139, TLR2 rs3804099 and MYD88 rs4988453 were associated with PTB in females (OR = 0.49, p = 0.0009; OR = 0.51, p = 0.0008; OR = 0.33, p = 0.027; here and below log-additive model with minor alleles assumed as effect associated alleles), while SNP TLR8 rs3764880 showed a significant association in males (OR = 0.44, p = 0.0087). Furthermore, SNPs TLR9 rs352139 and TLR8 rs3764880 were associated with PTB in the late-onset (≥39-year-old) patient group (OR = 0.60, p = 0.0029 and OR = 0.70, p = 0.021, respectively) and SNPs TLR2 rs3804099, TLR4 rs4986790 and TLR4 rs1927906 in the early-onset (≤ 38-year-old) group (OR = 0.53, p = 0.0012; OR = 3.45, p = 0.013; OR = 2.31, p = 0.044, respectively). After correction for multiple testing, only SNPs TLR9 rs352139 and TLR2 rs3804099 in the female group and SNP TLR2 rs3804099 in the early-onset group remained significant. In summary, we show an association of SNP TLR8 rs3764880 with PTB in the Moldavian male population, providing support to previous studies conducted on other populations. Polymorphisms rs3804099 (TLR2) and rs352139 (TLR9) may also be associated with PTB risk in the Moldavian population but their effect is less consistent across different studies. Additional large-scale association studies along with functional tests are required to dissect the relevance of these associations.

Age-Specific Association of CCL5 Gene Polymorphism with Pulmonary Tuberculosis: A Case-Control Study.

OBJECTIVES: Chemokines play a key role in immune regulation and response, and have been implicated in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis (TB). In this study, we investigated whether functional polymorphisms of the chemokines CCL5, CCL2, and CXCL8 are associated with pulmonary TB in a Moldavian population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 250 patients with TB and 184 healthy controls were screened for CCL5 -403G/A (rs2107538), CCL5 In1.1T/C (rs2280789), CCL2 -2518A/G (rs1024611), and CXCL8 -251A/T (rs4073) polymorphisms using standard polymerase chain reaction techniques. RESULTS: None of the analyzed variants were found to be significantly associated with overall pulmonary TB susceptibility. However, the CCL5 In1.1T/C polymorphism was significantly associated with early-onset TB in patients younger than 30 (dominant model, odds ratio [OR] = 3.01, p = 0.0046) or younger than 40 years (dominant model, OR = 2.17, p = 0.0099), and the conducted case-only analysis demonstrated that CCL5 In1.1T/C C-allele carriers exhibited an earlier TB onset than TT homozygotes (36.14 years vs. 40.13 years, p = 0.0065). In addition, nominal significance was observed for an association between TB incidence and both the eight paired genotypes in the overall patient cohort (0.017 < p < 0.05) and the CCL2 -2518A/G polymorphism among males (dominant model, OR = 0.55, p = 0.041; log-additive model, OR = 0.57, p = 0.018). CONCLUSION: The CCL5 In1.1T/C polymorphism may modulate pulmonary early-onset TB risk.

Polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferase and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase genes in Moldavian patients with ulcerative colitis: Genotype-phenotype correlation.

BACKGROUND: Glutathione S-transferases (GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1) and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) are important enzymes for protection against oxidative stress. In addition, MTHFR has an essential role in DNA synthesis, repair, and methylation. Their polymorphisms have been implicated in the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis (UC). The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of selected polymorphisms in these genes in the development of UC in the Moldavian population. METHODS: In a case-control study including 128 UC patients and 136 healthy individuals, GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes (polymorphic deletions) were determined using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The GSTP1 rs1695 (Ile105Val), MTHFR rs1801133 (C677T), and MTHFR rs1801131 (A1298C) polymorphisms were studied with restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis. Genotype-phenotype correlations were examined using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: None of the genotypes, either alone or in combination, showed a strong association with UC. The case-only sub-phenotypic association analysis showed an association of the MTHFR rs1801133 polymorphism with the extent of UC under co-dominant (p corrected = 0.040) and recessive (p corrected = 0.020; OR = 0.15; CI = 0.04-0.63) genetic models. Also, an association between the MTHFR rs1801131 polymorphism and the severity of UC was reported for the over-dominant model (p corrected = 0.023; coefficient = 0.32; 95% CI = 0.10-0.54). CONCLUSION: The GST and MTHFR genotypes do not seem to be a relevant risk factor for UC in our sample. There was, however, evidence that variants in MTHFR may influence the clinical features in UC patients. Additional larger studies investigating the relationship between GST and MTHFR polymorphisms and UC are required.