News & Events
News & Events
The Euro-Asian TB-VIR research network holds its second assessment meeting at IPK, in Seoul (Korea)
2010-03-04
The Euro-Asian TB-VIR research network holds its second assessment meeting at IPK, in Seoul (Korea)
Towards a better understanding of tuberculosis
Institut Pasteur of Korea will host in March 2010 the second annual meeting of the TB-VIR project, the occasion for the partners involved to discuss their latest results and future prospects.
TB-VIR aims
The TB-VIR project is designed to provide a better understanding of the correlations between the genetic diversity of a particularly virulent strain of tuberculosis, M. tuberculosis W-Beijing, a predominant strain of tuberculosis frequently associated with resistance to antimicrobial drugs, and the responses, with varying degrees of success, of the immune defences of people infected by this strain.
TB-VIR aims to facilitate the modelling of disease dynamics, prediction of epidemics, policy planning and monitoring of the outcome of new interventions, and may provide insight into the life processes of the tubercle bacillus. Results generated by this project should contribute to the development of new, more adequate strategies for diagnostic and prognostic at the patient and community levels.
Contribution of the TB-VIR project to the research on tuberculosis
Two years after its launch, TB-VIR has accomplished major progresses towards its objectives.
On the pathogen side, the genetic diversity of W-Beijng strain has been investigated by analysing more than 600 isolates representatives of this strain’s diversity in China, and additional isolates from other countries all over the world. Seven different sublineages present in China and in Europe have been identified, which will be further studied focusing on host-pathogen interactions. In parallel, the whole genome of the W-Beijng reference strain GC1237 has been sequenced. Furthermore, using the high content phenotypic cell-based technology developed at Institut Pasteur Korea, intracellular fate of eleven thousand Mycobacterium tuberculosis W-Beijing mutants within macrophages was investigated and 10 M. tuberculosis genes have been identified to be involved in the pathogen trafficking within the host cells, an important step for the spreading of bacteria within the body and the development of the infection. These genes will now be studied in more details in the other M. tuberculosis strains.
The second period of the TB-VIR project, starting now, will focus on the host-bacteria relationships. So far the experiments conducted within the project have allowed the identification within macrophages of specific genes differentially regulated during infection by M. tuberculosis. The role of these genes in the mycobacterial virulence and in the host immune response will be further investigated. The impact on the gene expression of infection by different strains will also be observed in the coming months. All these results will participate to the understanding of the relationships between M. tuberculosis genetic diversity and the differential virulence and immune responses of the patients. This question will be at the heart of the investigations until the end of the project.
About tuberculosis
The worldwide tuberculosis epidemic takes 1.5 million victims each year and is growing in certain parts of the world, particularly in developing countries. More than one third of the inhabitants of the planet present latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Environmental factors, but also the virulence and the load of bacterial strain present and the genetic factors of infected individuals cause 10 to 15% of these subjects to develop the disease. Tuberculosis is one of the major targets identified in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), designed to stop or reduce the incidence of major diseases by 2015. This epidemic can be stopped.
The TB-VIR project: A collaborative Euro-Asian project
The TB-VIR project “Study of the genetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis W-Beijing: Differential virulence and host immune responses" (2008 - 2011) comprises eminent tuberculosis specialists working in internationally renowned institutions, half in Asia (Korea, China), and half in Europe (France, Germany and Spain). This project has been granted a budget of three million euro over three years by the European Commission in the context of the 7th European Commission FP (Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development).
The TB-VIR consortium is coordinated by the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) [French national centre of scientific research] and comprises the Institut Pasteur of Korea (Seoul), the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the University of Fudan and Ruijin hospital (Shanghai, China), and the Institut Pasteur, Inserm-Transfert and the biotechnology company IntegraGen S.A. (France), the University of Saragossa (Spain), Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology and GATC Biotech (Germany).
Please visit us at : www.tb-vir.org
Towards a better understanding of tuberculosis
Institut Pasteur of Korea will host in March 2010 the second annual meeting of the TB-VIR project, the occasion for the partners involved to discuss their latest results and future prospects.
TB-VIR aims
The TB-VIR project is designed to provide a better understanding of the correlations between the genetic diversity of a particularly virulent strain of tuberculosis, M. tuberculosis W-Beijing, a predominant strain of tuberculosis frequently associated with resistance to antimicrobial drugs, and the responses, with varying degrees of success, of the immune defences of people infected by this strain.
TB-VIR aims to facilitate the modelling of disease dynamics, prediction of epidemics, policy planning and monitoring of the outcome of new interventions, and may provide insight into the life processes of the tubercle bacillus. Results generated by this project should contribute to the development of new, more adequate strategies for diagnostic and prognostic at the patient and community levels.
Contribution of the TB-VIR project to the research on tuberculosis
Two years after its launch, TB-VIR has accomplished major progresses towards its objectives.
On the pathogen side, the genetic diversity of W-Beijng strain has been investigated by analysing more than 600 isolates representatives of this strain’s diversity in China, and additional isolates from other countries all over the world. Seven different sublineages present in China and in Europe have been identified, which will be further studied focusing on host-pathogen interactions. In parallel, the whole genome of the W-Beijng reference strain GC1237 has been sequenced. Furthermore, using the high content phenotypic cell-based technology developed at Institut Pasteur Korea, intracellular fate of eleven thousand Mycobacterium tuberculosis W-Beijing mutants within macrophages was investigated and 10 M. tuberculosis genes have been identified to be involved in the pathogen trafficking within the host cells, an important step for the spreading of bacteria within the body and the development of the infection. These genes will now be studied in more details in the other M. tuberculosis strains.
The second period of the TB-VIR project, starting now, will focus on the host-bacteria relationships. So far the experiments conducted within the project have allowed the identification within macrophages of specific genes differentially regulated during infection by M. tuberculosis. The role of these genes in the mycobacterial virulence and in the host immune response will be further investigated. The impact on the gene expression of infection by different strains will also be observed in the coming months. All these results will participate to the understanding of the relationships between M. tuberculosis genetic diversity and the differential virulence and immune responses of the patients. This question will be at the heart of the investigations until the end of the project.
About tuberculosis
The worldwide tuberculosis epidemic takes 1.5 million victims each year and is growing in certain parts of the world, particularly in developing countries. More than one third of the inhabitants of the planet present latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Environmental factors, but also the virulence and the load of bacterial strain present and the genetic factors of infected individuals cause 10 to 15% of these subjects to develop the disease. Tuberculosis is one of the major targets identified in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), designed to stop or reduce the incidence of major diseases by 2015. This epidemic can be stopped.
The TB-VIR project: A collaborative Euro-Asian project
The TB-VIR project “Study of the genetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis W-Beijing: Differential virulence and host immune responses" (2008 - 2011) comprises eminent tuberculosis specialists working in internationally renowned institutions, half in Asia (Korea, China), and half in Europe (France, Germany and Spain). This project has been granted a budget of three million euro over three years by the European Commission in the context of the 7th European Commission FP (Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development).
The TB-VIR consortium is coordinated by the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) [French national centre of scientific research] and comprises the Institut Pasteur of Korea (Seoul), the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the University of Fudan and Ruijin hospital (Shanghai, China), and the Institut Pasteur, Inserm-Transfert and the biotechnology company IntegraGen S.A. (France), the University of Saragossa (Spain), Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology and GATC Biotech (Germany).
Please visit us at : www.tb-vir.org