Mycobacterium Tuberculosis: Molecular Infection Biology, Pathogenesis, Diagnostics and New Interventions

This book reviews recent advances in the molecular and infection biology, pathology, and molecular epidemiology of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, as well as the identification and validation of novel molecular drug targets for the treatment of this mycobacterial disease.

Despite being completely curable, tuberculosis is still one of the leading global causes of death. M. tuberculosis, the causative organism - one of the smartest pathogens known - adopts highly intelligent strategies for survival and pathogenesis.

Presenting a wealth of information on the molecular infection biology of M. tuberculosis, as well as nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), the book provides an overview of the functional role of the PE/PPE group of proteins, which is exclusive to the genus Mycobacteria, of host-pathogen interactions, and virulence. It also explores the pathogenesis of the infection, pathology, epidemiology, and diagnosis of NTM. Finally it discusses current and novel approaches in vaccine development against tuberculosis, including the role of nanotechnology.

With state-of-the-art contributions from experts in the respective domains, this book is an informative resource for practitioners as well as medical postgraduate students and researchers.

Prof Seyed E. Hasnain has contributed significantly to tuberculosis research focusing on infection biology and functional epidemiology. He has received numerous recognitions and honors including, Robert Koch Fellow, Berlin; Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology (USA); Member, German National Academy of Sciences-Leopoldina; Fellow, TWAS (Italy), and Fellow of all the major Indian Science Academies (FNA/FASc/FNASc). He also received the Alexander von Humboldt Research Award (Germany), Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, GD Birla Award, JC Bose Fellowship and many others. A former member of the Science Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India for 2 terms (2004-2014), Hasnain was the first Director of the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Hyderabad and later Vice-Chancellor of the prestigious University of Hyderabad (2005-2011) and served as invited Professor, IIT-Delhi (2011-2019). Currently, he is the Vice-Chancellor of Jamia Hamdard and alsoProfessor, JH-Institute of Molecular Medicine, where he leads a very large, active and generously funded TB research group.

Dr. Nasreen Zafar Ehtesham received her Master's from Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh and graduate training from the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. She pursued her Ph.D. at the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi (1991) and joined the ICGEB as a Rockefeller Postdoc Fellow. She was appointed as Deputy Director, National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad where her group focused on nutrition and inflammation biology. She established the link between pathogenesis, inflammation and stress response using the Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection model. An elected Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, she has served as a member of several decision-making bodies of the Health Ministry, S&T Ministry. She is the recipient of many awards, including the ICMR-Kshanika Oration Award for her contributionsto tuberculosis biology. She has published over 70 research papers in prestigious journals such as PNAS and serves on the editorial boards of a number of journals. Currently, she is Director-in-Charge of the ICMR National Institute of Pathology, New Delhi.

Dr. Sonam Grover is a UGC-Assistant Professor at JH-Institute of Molecular Medicine, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi. She completed her Ph.D. at JNU (2014) and joined Kusuma School of Biological Sciences, IIT Delhi as a Postdoctoral Fellow the same year. During this tenure, she received a Women Scientist Grant from the Department of Health Research, Govt of India. Her main areas of research include Mycobacterium tuberculosis host-pathogen interactions, drug repurposing and identifying novel drug targets against tuberculosis. She has published over 25 research papers in various international, peer-reviewed journals including mBio and Molecular Neurobiology. She has deliveredtalks and presented her work at several national and international conferences and symposia. She is PI/CoPI in research projects funded by agencies such as DBT and DHR. She was also awarded the prestigious 'ASCB Travel Award for graduate students' to present her research at international conferences.