New molecule promises to fight TB, HIV
By Hasmukh Dattani

A molecule extracted from a marine micro-organism, found off the coast of Rameshwaram, could potentially be the next biggest development in treating TB and HIV, claimed researchers here on Wednesday.

Offering new hope to those living with HIV as well as TB patients, a group of scientists from the Tuberculosis Research Centre (TRC), IIT-Madras and Periyar University claim to have extracted the molecule, Transitmycin, from the marine micro-organism, ‘Streptomyces sp’, that was isolated from a soil sample collected from the coral reef off the coast of Rameshwaram. The brominated and pigmented antibiotic has been found to be active against both TB and HIV, said researchers.

“Transitmycin inhibited drug sensitive, multidrug resistant (MDR) and XDR Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains as well as bacterial pathogens,” said Dr Vanaja Kumar, principal investigator and head of the department of bacteriology at the TRC. It was also found to be active against latent bacilli, said the researchers. Enthusing them further, the compound was found to inhibit two most widely prevalent clades of HIV-1, the subtypes B & C.

Experts said the latter subtype was most prevalent in India and parts of the African continent, reportedly responsible for the worst epidemics and around half of all infections.

Importantly, this compound is found to be effective against both Mycobacterium and HIV, a unique feature that enables the treatment of patients who have been infected with both these pathogens unlike the existing medicines that cannot be administered simultaneously as they counteract, said the scientists.

Preclinical research, including animal studies, are to be taken up prior to testing this compound in human clinical trials, they said, adding that it would be ready in 10 years if the plan fell in place.

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