Infectious disease

Cell culture studies suggest cysteine, N-acetylcysteine and other thiol analogs could help treat tuberculosis (TB) and reduce resistance to the generic TB drugs rifampicin and isoniazid. In rifampicin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture, isoniazid plus cysteine or the combination of isoniazid, rifampicin and cysteine decreased growth compared with isoniazid alone or the combination of isoniazid and rifampicin. In M. tuberculosis culture, isoniazid plus one of seven thiol analogs -- including cysteine and N-acetylcysteine -- decreased the emergence of isoniazid-resistant growth compared with isoniazid alone. Also in the culture, rifampicin plus cysteine decreased the emergence of rifampicin-resistant growth compared with rifampicin alone. In an M. tuberculosis-infected mouse macrophage cell line, isoniazid plus N-acetylcysteine decreased bacterial survival compared with isoniazid alone. Next steps include testing N-acetylcysteine in combination with generic TB drugs in animal models of TB...