Wilkinson lab

Tuberculosis Laboratory

We investigate the interaction between tuberculosis and the immune response to find better ways to understand, prevent and treat the disease, particularly in people who also have HIV.

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the world’s commonest diseases, estimated to infect up to a quarter of the global population and causing around 1.3 million deaths every year.

We want to find out why TB causes death and disability and how the disease damages certain parts of the body, such as the brain, heart or lungs. Using materials and data from clinical trials carried out in South Africa, we are investigating how individual differences in the immune system and other factors can affect the course of the disease.

We also want to know how to use antibiotics better, so that we can treat the infection effectively but also reduce the damage caused by the immune response to the disease. We are particularly interested in looking at the impact of TB infection in people who are already suffering from other conditions including HIV.

Our work aims to reveal new ways to improve the prevention and treatment of TB, and to identify targets for immune-modulating therapies that could save lives and reduce the global burden of TB.