In collaboration with researchers at AIIMS, Dr. Tarun Sharma group has found that aptamer-based inhibitors bind to HupB protein found on the bacterial cell surface, significantly inhibiting its entry into host cells. “Compared with controls, the aptamer-treated bacteria showed reduced ability to enter the host cells. At 55%, the HupB-13T aptamer had greater ability to inhibit TB bacteria entry than the HupB-4T (42%) aptamer. So, targeting the HupB protein using aptamer-based inhibitors can effectively block TB infection and will be effective in both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB patients.” the newspaper quoted Dr. Tarun Kumar Sharma.

https://journosdiary.com/2018/09/08/aptamer-inhibitor-tb-bacteria-into-cells/

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/aptamer-inhibits-tb-bacteria-entry-into-cells/article24903152.ece