Review of Current Tuberculosis Human Infection Studies for Use in Accelerating Tuberculosis Vaccine Development: A Meeting Report.

Tools to evaluate and accelerate tuberculosis (TB) vaccine development are needed to advance global TB control strategies. Validated human infection studies for TB have the potential to facilitate breakthroughs in understanding disease pathogenesis, identify correlates of protection, develop diagnostic tools, and accelerate and de-risk vaccine and drug development. However, key challenges remain for realizing the clinical utility of these models, which require further discussion and alignment among key stakeholders.

The status of tuberculosis vaccine development.

Tuberculosis represents the leading global cause of death from an infectious agent. Controlling the tuberculosis epidemic thus represents an urgent global public health priority. Epidemiological modelling suggests that, although drug treatments for tuberculosis continue to improve, WHO timelines to control the spread of the disease require a new vaccine capable of preventing tuberculosis, particularly in adolescents and adults.

Preferred product characteristics for therapeutic vaccines to improve tuberculosis treatment outcomes: Key considerations from World Health Organization consultations.

Treating tuberculosis (TB) requires a multidrug course of treatment lasting 6 months, or longer for drug-resistant TB, which is difficult to complete and often not well tolerated. Treatment failure and recurrence after end-of-treatment can have devastating consequences, including progressive debilitation, death, the transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis - the infectious agent responsible for causing TB - to others, and may be associated with the development of drug-resistant TB. The burden on health systems is important, with severe economic consequences.

Research and development of new tuberculosis vaccines: a review.

Tuberculosis kills more people worldwide than any other single infectious disease agent, a threat made more dire by the spread of drug-resistant strains of . Development of new vaccines capable of preventing TB disease and new infection are an essential component of the strategy to combat the TB epidemic. Accordingly, the WHO considers the development of new TB vaccines a major public health priority.