Highlighting the Importance of Matrix Metalloproteinase 1, 8, and 9 Expression during the Progression of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection

Abstract

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the major threats to public health; annually it kills more than 1.5 million people around the globe. Tuberculosis is caused by an intracellular pathogen named Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). This Mtb enters the lung through the respiratory passage by inhalation in healthy individuals. Infection of this disease starts from the settlement of Mtb to the lung alveoli of the host from the external bacilli air droplets. After settlement, the multiplication of Mtb results in the induction of innate immunity through the alveolar macrophages. Compared to other infectious diseases, tuberculosis infection was transmitted rapidly by the infected aerosols released from infected persons to healthy persons through the air. After infection, disease development results in the formation of drug-resistance TB (DR-TB) with four subcategories, i.e. Single-drug resistant TB (SDR-TB), multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB), extensive drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB), and total-drug resistant TB (TDR-TB). As a result, this DR-TB may act as a major source of TB death due to spontaneous antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This AMR makes the anti-TB drugs ineffective. In the current scenario, researchers are trying to find the drug target to decrease tuberculosis progression instead of drug resistance. The present review reports that the outcome of research studies showed that matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) may act as a suitable target for treating Mtb infection with the help of specific proteinase inhibitors. Recent reports have shown the specific role of matrix metalloproteinases 1, 8, and 9 in the disease progression and its role in normal homeostasis mechanism with the help of specific animal models/In vitro models.