title: The potential application of photodynamic therapy in drug-resistant tuberculosis.
abstract: Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious bacterial disease that has historically created a high global health burden. Unfortunately, the emergence of drug-resistant TB (DR-TB), which includes multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB), has greatly affected the treatment of TB. Anti-TB chemotherapy drugs are classified into five groups to facilitate application of effective guidelines for the treatment regimen. However, chemotherapy has a limited ability to treat DR-TB, and therefore a novel alternative treatment for DR-TB is required. In this review, we focused on photodynamic therapy (PDT) as potential treatment for DR-TB. PDT is a widely used cancer treatment that combines photosensitizers and harmless laser light to produce reactive oxygen species that selectively damage the target cells. Initially, PDT was originally developed to target pathogenic microorganisms but fell into disuse because of adverse reactions. Recently, photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy is attracting attention again as an alternative treatment for bacterial infections. In our previous study, we suggested that PDT could be a novel option to treat MDR- and XDR-TB in vitro. Despite the limited previous studies regarding PDT in TB models, fast-developing bronchoscopic technologies and clinician experience will soon facilitate the clinical application of safe and minimally invasive PDT for TB.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam-Si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ji-Eun
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Kosin University College of Medicine, Seo-gu, Busan, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Chul-Ho
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Oak
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center, National Masan Tuberculosis Hospital, Gyeongnam, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Nackmoon
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sung
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam-Si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea; Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: jheon@snu.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Sanghoon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jheon
mesh_terms: D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D010778:Photochemotherapy; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents; D018088:Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D000995:Antitubercular Agents; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents