The nutrients covered in these reviews include protein, calories, vitamins, and trace elements.
Malnutrition impairs many aspects of specific and nonspecific host defense.
These innate responses are important in the initiation of acquired immunity and the essential effector components of cell-mediated immunity. The precise mechanisms of immune alterations caused by malnutrition have not been elucidated. The thymic microenvironment and hormones are essential for the differentiation and maturation of immunocompetent T lymphocytes. Thus, malnutrition may act indirectly by inducing hormonal changes that directly affect immunologic functions. The interaction between malnutrition and host antituberculosis resistance is complex and not well understood.