Genetics and Tuberculosis Resistance
Authors: Ibrahim A. Tangoren
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1992)

Letters1 November 1992Genetics and Tuberculosis ResistanceIbrahim A. TangorenIbrahim A. TangorenSearch for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-117-9-796 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptTo the Editors: Dr. Stead neatly summarizes the case for an underlying genetic basis for resistance to infection by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. His challenge, in his concluding paragraph, to ". . . genetic engineers to identify the genes or genes responsible for enhanced resistance . . ." may be a long time in being answered (1).Although many homozygous genetic diseases probably arose as population responses to environmental pathogens, this course of investigation may not be fertile. Consider the sickle cell scenario, in which the heterozygous state conferred enough resistance to malaria to maintain the allele in the population, but at...References1. Stead W. Genetics and resistance to tuberculosis: could resistance be enhanced by genetic engineering? Ann Intern Med. 1992;116:937-41. LinkGoogle Scholar2. RotterDiamond JJ. What maintains the frequencies of human genetic diseases? Nature. 1987;329:289-90. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. O'Brien S. Ghetto legacy. Curr Biol. 1991;1:209-11. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar1. Stead W. Genetics and resistance to tuberculosis. Ann Intern Med. 1992;116:937-41. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Pappagianis D. Epidemiology of coccidioidomycosis. In: Coccidioidomycosis—A Text. New York: Plenum Publishing Corporation; 1980:75-8. CrossrefGoogle Scholar1. Stead W. Genetics and resistance to tuberculosis. Ann Intern Med. 1992;116:937-41. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Casas F. Historia de las Indias. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Economica; 1965. Google Scholar3. Ferguson R. Tuberculosis among the Indians of the great plains. Transactions of the Fourteenth Annual Conference of the National Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis; 1928. Google Scholar1. RotterDiamond JJ. What maintains the frequencies of human genetic diseases? Nature. 1987;329:289-90. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. SteadLofgrenSennerReddick WJJW. Racial differences in susceptibility to infection with M. tuberculosis. N Engl J Med. 1990;322:422-7. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. SchurrMaloRadziochBuschmanMorganGros EDDEKP. Genetic control of innate resistance to mycobacterial infections. Immunology Today. 1991;12:A42-5. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. PappagianisLindayBeallWilliams DSSP. Ethnic background and the clinical course of coccidioidomycosis. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1979; 120:959-61. MedlineGoogle Scholar5. Ferguson R. Studies in Tuberculosis. Toronto: University of Toronto Press; 1955:6-9. Google Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Ibrahim A. TangorenAffiliations: University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Philadelphia, PA 19104-6067 PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byMolecular methods 1 November 1992Volume 117, Issue 9Page: 796-797KeywordsAllelesEngineersGenetic diseasesGenetic engineeringGeneticsMalariaMycobacterium tuberculosisPathogensTuberculosis ePublished: 1 December 2008 Issue Published: 1 November 1992 PDF downloadLoading ...