Researchers say they have found a gene variant that has a natural resistance against typhoid fever. Scientists from the Nossal Institute of Global Health, at the University of Melbourne in Australia, screened the genome of hundreds of healthy and infected people from Vietnam and Nepal. Dr. Sarah Dunstan, the lead researcher of the study, says the were looking for genes "associated with susceptibility, or resistance from typhoid." They found that people carrying a particular variant of the HLA-DRB1 gene provides a better protection against typhoid fever. HLA-DRB1, also known as major histocompatibility complex, class II, DR beta 1, codes for a receptor that plays a central role in the immune system, by recognizing proteins from invading bacteria. Dr. Dunstan says, "this study is the first large-scale, unbiased search for human genes that affect a person's risk of typhoid."
Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, is a serious health problem to underdeveloped countries. Consuming food or drinking water contaminated with the Salmonella Typhi or Paratyphi bacterias is how typhoid fever is contracted. 26.9 million people are infected with typhoid fever, and about 200,000 people succumb to typhoid fever a year. The infecting bacterias are becoming resistant to antibiotics, and currently, there is no licensed vaccine for typhoid fever. Hopefully, this discovery can lead to enhanced vaccines for not only typhoid fever, but also other invasive bacterial diseases.
Although, I did not initially know much about typhoid fever, this article stood out to me. Just hearing that researchers are getting closer to discovering treatments to serious diseases, makes me happy. This could be the beginning of a discovery that could change the world.
Related Article: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/285212.php
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