Health · Medical Research · 5 hrs ago
CSIR-CCMB team identifies potential targets for new TB treatments
A team at India’s CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology mapped protein transport in the TB bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
These transport systems move proteins that the bacterium needs to grow, survive and cause disease.
Using computer models and laboratory tests, the researchers identified 92 key components and nearly 200 reactions in the network.
When they reduced the activity of two pathways, the bacterium’s growth fell sharply in laboratory cultures and inside immune cells.
Disrupting the pathways also affected protein export and damaged the bacterium’s cell membrane.
The findings matter because India has nearly a quarter of global TB cases, and drug-resistant TB is a major public health challenge.
The work suggests possible targets for future TB drugs, but developing effective medicines will take several more years of research.
A CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology team identified weaknesses in the protein transport systems of the bacterium that causes tuberculosis.
The researchers found that reducing the activity of two secretion pathways sharply reduced bacterial growth in laboratory cultures and inside immune cells.
The study mapped 92 key components and nearly 200 molecular reactions in the bacterium’s protein transport network.
The findings could help identify targets for new TB drugs, but developing effective medicines will require several more years of research.
- Who
- Scientists at CSIR-CCMB, led by Director Vinay Kumar Nandicoori, worked with researchers from the Institute of Mathematical Sciences and the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute.
- What
- The team mapped the TB bacterium’s protein transport network and identified weaknesses in two secretion pathways.
- When
- The study was published on November 10, 2026.
- Where
- The research involved CSIR-CCMB, the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai, and the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute in Faridabad.
- Why
- The work could help researchers identify new drug targets against TB.
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- Network components
- 92 key components
- Molecular reactions
- Nearly 200
- SecA1 pathway
- Export of more than 100 proteins was affected
- Tat system
- Around 140 linked proteins were affected
- Publication
- Molecular & Cellular Proteomics, November 10, 2026
What people are saying
Protein secretion acts like a delivery system inside the bacterium and is vital for its survival,