The COVID-19/Tuberculosis Syndemic and Potential Antibody Therapy for TB Based on the Lessons Learnt From the Pandemic

Abstract

2020 will be marked in history for the dreadful implications of the COVID-19 pandemic that shook the world globally. The pandemic has reshaped the normality of life and affected mankind in the aspects of mental and physical health, financial, economy, growth, and development. The focus shift to COVID-19 has indirectly impacted an existing air-borne disease, Tuberculosis. In addition to the decrease in TB diagnosis, the emergence of the TB/COVID-19 syndemic and its serious implications (possible reactivation of latent TB post-COVID-19, aggravation of an existing active TB condition, or escalation of the severity of a COVID-19 during TB-COVID-19 coinfection), serve as primary reasons to equally prioritize TB. On a different note, the valuable lessons learnt for the COVID-19 pandemic provide useful knowledge for enhancing TB diagnostics and therapeutics. In this review, the crucial need to focus on TB amid the COVID-19 pandemic has been discussed. Besides, a general comparison between COVID-19 and TB in the aspects of pathogenesis, diagnostics, symptoms, and treatment options with importance given to antibody therapy were presented. Lastly, the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic and how it is applicable to enhance the antibody-based immunotherapy for TB have been presented.

Keywords: COVID-19; COVID-19/TB syndemic; T cell receptor (TCR)-like antibody; therapeutic antibody; tuberculosis.

Figure 1

The implications from the co-infection of COVID-19 and Tuberculosis.

Figure 2

T cell receptor (TCR)-like antibody via inhalation delivery method. The inhaled antibody is capable of binding to the Mtb antigenic peptide presented on the MHC class I complex of the alveolar macrophages and subsequently mediate a wide range of immune defense mechanism. (Created in BioRender.com).