Switch to हिंदी

Health, Fitness, Beauty & Diet | Pregnancy & Parenting | Diseases & Home Remedies | TheHealthSite.com

Health, Fitness, Beauty & Diet | Pregnancy & Parenting | Diseases & Home Remedies | TheHealthSite.com

हिंदी
  • Health A-Z
  • Home Remedies
  • Diseases
    • Type 1 Diabetes
    • Type 2 Diabetes
    • Cancer
    • Heart Attack
    • Pneumonia
    • Diseases A-Z
  • Diet & Fitness
    • Weight Management
    • Exercise & Body Building
    • Diet & Recipes
    • Yoga
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Pregnancy
    • Conceiving
    • Infertility
    • Labour & Delivery
    • Pregnancy week-by-week
    • Breastfeeding
    • Baby Names
  • Beauty
    • Skin
    • Hair
    • Grooming
  • Photos
  • Videos
BLA21 cibil.com ageas federal zee hindustan
Home / Health News / TB bacteria trigger cough, facilitating spread

TB bacteria trigger cough, facilitating spread

A recent study has found that the bacteria that cause tuberculosis may facilitate their own spread by producing a molecule that triggers cough.

By: ANI   | | Published: March 6, 2020 9:09 am
Tags: Bacteria  Cough  Tuberculosis infection  
corona
corona

A new study suggests that the bacteria responsible for causing tuberculosis facilitate their own spread by producing a molecule that triggers the cough. Also Read - Tuberculosis vaccine could ‘lower the risk of contracting COVID-19’

The study was published in the journal – Cell. Also Read - Get instant relief from cold with ginger!



The findings of the study can lead to new ways to prevent the spread of tuberculosis, which is responsible for the death of more than 1.5 million people per year worldwide. Also Read - Is Sanjay Dutt suffering from lung cancer? Spot the early signs of this condition

People have known since ancient times that coughing is a primary symptom of tuberculosis and that cough allows for the spread of disease from person to person.

However, the cause of tuberculosis-related coughs has been unclear says study leader Michael Shiloh, M.D., Ph.D., an associate professor in UTSW’s Department of Internal Medicine’s Division of Infectious Disease and Department of Microbiology.

The prevailing hypothesis has been that coughing is triggered by infection-induced lung irritation and inflammation, but this has never been definitively proved.

Shiloh and his colleagues had a different idea: They speculated that the bacterial agent that causes tuberculosis, mycobacterium tuberculosis, itself might produce a substance that triggers nerves in the airway responsible for causing someone with the disease to cough, thereby allowing for propagation of disease.

To test this idea, the team relied on guinea pigs, a lab animal often used to study both tuberculosis and cough. Although guinea pigs have been used as an experimental model for tuberculosis infection for more than a century, it was not clear whether the disease causes these animals to cough.

To answer this question, Shiloh and his colleagues placed guinea pigs infected with tuberculosis into special chambers that registered pressure and volume changes caused by coughing. Sure enough, tuberculosis-infected animals coughed significantly more than those that were tuberculosis-free.

To determine whether the bacteria produce a substance that can trigger coughing, the researchers isolated and tested various components from mycobacterium tuberculosis, trying to determine if these components could do two things.

First, could the components on their own make guinea pigs cough? And second, could the components make pain-sensing nerve cells grown in the lab – the type of cell responsible for stimulating coughing in the lungs – behave as if they were being triggered to induce a cough reflex?

After a series of experiments with components from mycobacterium tuberculosis as well as from a large assortment of other mycobacterial species, Shiloh’s team ultimately identified the mycobacterial cell-surface fatty molecule known as sulfolipid-1 (SL-1) as the principal molecule that activates neurons grown in the lab.

This response also occurred in human pain-sensing nerve cells, suggesting that SL-1 and its function has been conserved through evolution among different mammalian species. Importantly, when guinea pigs were exposed to purified SL-1, the animals indeed coughed.

To show that SL-1 is the culprit behind cough, the researchers infected guinea pigs with a genetically altered strain of mycobacterium tuberculosis that cannot produce SL-1.

These guinea pigs developed all the typical symptoms of tuberculosis but did not cough, which led the research team to conclude that SL-1 is critical for triggering cough during tuberculosis infection.

Together, Shiloh says, the findings suggest that tuberculosis-causing bacteria produce SL-1 primarily to stimulate a cough reflex in order to propagate the spread of mycobacteria from infected to uninfected people.

Eventually, he says, if research shows that suppressing cough is not harmful to infected individuals, scientists may be able to develop a way to prevent transmission by either counteracting SL-1 or preventing its production.

“In many places where tuberculosis is endemic, people with active tuberculosis are frequently not admitted to the hospital, but simply sent home with antibiotics. People can cough for months and spread the disease even when they are receiving appropriate treatment,” said Shiloh.

“Someday, doctors may give antibiotics in conjunction with a medication that prevents coughing, which in turn could prevent spread,” said Shiloh.

Conversely, he added that this molecule could be harnessed to help patients cough in conditions where it’s beneficial, such as cystic fibrosis or for patients who require breathing tubes.

Administering an aid that encourages coughing could help relieve the buildup of thick mucus in patients’ lungs.

Published : March 6, 2020 9:09 am
Read Disclaimer

Low carb diet may prevent age-related effects in brain, says study

Low carb diet may prevent age-related effects in brain, says study

Coronavirus update: COVID-free certificate mandatory for travel to India

Coronavirus update: COVID-free certificate mandatory for travel to India

Please Wait. Article Loading ....

Coronavirus Updates

Coronavirus Updates

Stay Informed, Be Safe

  • 'Coronil is evidence based medicine': Ramdev's Patanjali issues fact check response to IMA
  • COVID-19 vaccine for above 45: How to register and who is eligible? Everything answered
  • Hospitalised COVID-19 patients with sodium imbalance at high risk of respiratory failure, sudden death
  • Indian company develops triple-combination pills for migraine, gets FDA approval
  • Is it safe to travel if you have got the COVID-19 vaccine? Here's what experts say

Health Calculators

BMI Calculator
bmi Calculator
Ideal Body Weight
ideal body weight
Daily Calorie Intake
Daily calorie intake
Calories Burned
calories burned

Related Stories

Are you vegan? Load up on pickles, sauerkraut and more for your daily dose of probiotics

Are you vegan? Load up on pickles, sauerkraut and more for your daily dose of probiotics

Boost health of gut microbe to reduce severity of COVID-19 symptoms

Boost health of gut microbe to reduce severity of COVID-19 symptoms

Gut microbiome imbalances influence the likelihood of ‘long Covid’

Gut microbiome imbalances influence the likelihood of ‘long Covid’

Gut bacteria may increase the risk of some breast cancers: Study

Gut bacteria may increase the risk of some breast cancers: Study

Tuberculosis vaccine could ‘lower the risk of contracting COVID-19’

Tuberculosis vaccine could ‘lower the risk of contracting COVID-19’

Health News in Hindi

Pregnancy Symptoms: प्रेग्नेंसी के पहले महीने में नजर आने वाले संकेत और लक्षण

सेब के साथ इन चीजों का सेवन सेहत के लिए ठीक नहीं, जानें क्या हो सकते हैं नुकसान

Children And Mental Health: ये 5 संकेत बताते हैं कि आपका बच्चा मानसिक विकार से है ग्रसित

Stevia Side Effects: नेचुरल स्वीटनर स्टीविया हर्ब के फायदे ही नहीं इसके 5 नुकसान भी जानें

Vaccination for Children: बच्चे को वैक्सीन लगवाना भूल जाएं तो घबराएं नहीं, ‘कैच-अप वैक्सीनेशन’ की लें मदद

Read All

Recent Posts

  • New method can diagnose COVID-19 in less than 55 minutes: Here’s how
  • Healthy dessert recipes to beat sugar cravings when trying to lose weight
  • Kim Kardashian owes her fitness to a plant-based diet; What you need to know
  • ‘Coronil is evidence based medicine’: Ramdev’s Patanjali issues fact check response to IMA
  • Engage your core: The best workouts to lose belly fat fast

About The health Site

TheHealthSite.com is India's largest health site with more than 40 lakh unique visitors per month. We focus on fitness, beauty, health, pregnancy and more.

Most popular health and wellness website in India in 2012 at the Website of the year awards.

health@corp.india.com
+91 – 22 – 6697 1234
Landline Phone number 91 – 22 – 2490 0302.

ZEE ENTERTAINMENT ENTERPRISES LTD, 18th floor, A-Wing, Marathon Futurex, N. M. Joshi Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400013.

Useful Links

  • Weight Loss
  • Keto Diet Tips
  • Skin Care Tips
  • Intermittent Fasting
  • Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Ashwagandha
  • Cancer
  • Pneumonia
  • Diarrhoea
  • Dengue
  • Typhoid
  • Tuberculosis
  • Chickenpox
  • Chikungunya
  • Depression
  • Hepatitis
  • Diabetes
  • Type 2 diabetes
  • Arthritis
  • Swine Flu
  • Baby Names
  • Cough and cold
  • Heart Attack
  • Breast Cancer
  • Ebola Virus
  • Dengue
  • Malaria
  • International Yoga Day
  • Hypotension
  • Heart Failure
  • Asthma
  • Brain Tumour
  • Celebrity Fitness
  • Goitre
  • HIV/AIDS

We respect your privacy

  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Author Profiles

Copyright © 2021 Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited. All rights reserved.