A peek into a TB drug
Shorter-duration drug regimens are needed to treat tuberculosis, but drug regimens that are effective in mice often fail in clinical trials. In a new study, Rifat et al. have developed a rabbit model of pulmonary cavitary tuberculosis that mimics the pathology of the human disease. They used the model to explore the tissue distribution of two antibiotics in rabbit lung tubercular lesions. Rifapentine, but not rifampin, displayed poor penetration into necrotic cavitary lesions where the largest number of pathogenic bacteria reside. Combining this preclinical tissue penetration data with phase 2 clinical trial data enabled the authors to explain differences in treatment response among different TB patient populations.
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