Thiol-Dependent Peroxidases in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Antioxidant Defense

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) is the causative agent of tuberculosis disease. According to the Global Tuberculosis Control 2010 report of the World Health Organization http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/en/, approximately one-third of the world’s population is latently infected with M. tuberculosis and about two million people die of this disease every year. The emergence of multiand extensivelydrug resistant strains to the currently available drugs makes the development of new therapeutic strategies a priority. However, the mechanisms underlying pathogenesis, virulence and persistence of infections caused by M. tuberculosis are not completely understood (Nathan, 2009; Lawn & Zumla, 2011).