Focusing on DNA Repair and Damage Tolerance mechanisms in Mycobacterium tuberculosis: an Emerging Therapeutic Theme

Tuberculosis (TB) is one such disease that has become a nuisance in world scenario and one of the most deadly diseases of current times. The etiological agent of tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) kills millions of people each year. Not only 1.7 million people worldwide are estimated to harbor Mtb in latent form but 5 to 15 percent of which are expected to acquire an infection during lifetime. Though curable, long duration of drug regimen and expense leads to low patient adherence. Emergence of multi-, extensive- and total- drug resistant strains of Mtb further complicates the situation. Owing to high TB burden, scientists worldwide are trying to design novel therapeutics to combat this disease. Therefore, to identify new drug targets, there is a growing interest in targeting DNA repair pathways to fight this infection. Thus, this review aims to explore DNA repair and damage tolerance as an efficient target for drug development by understanding Mtb DNA repair and tolerance machinery and its regulation, its role in pathogenesis and survival, mutagenesis, and consequently in development of drug resistance.