Tuberculosis dogma upended: Even uninfected cells trigger immune defenses
Thursday, June 12, 2014 - 09:02
in Health & Medicine
Immune system cells uninfected with the bacterium that causes tuberculosis trigger immune system T cells to fight the disease, infectious disease experts have found by experimenting with mice. The findings upend the long-held scientific belief that only cells, known specifically as dendritic cells, infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis could stimulate a broader, defensive immune system attack of the invading microorganism.