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Pathogenesis of Tuberculosis of the Nervous System

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Tuberculosis of the Central Nervous System

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Abstract

The understanding of the pathogenesis of tuberculosis (TB) of the central nervous system (CNS) started early in 1933, when Rich and McCordock published their experimental observations about tuberculous meningitis (TBM). It is believed that extrapulmonary TB infection including CNS starts with respiratory infection followed by hematogenous dissemination to other sites. Tuberculous lesions will develop in the meninges and may remain dormant for years. Ruptures of the foci and mycobacteria release into subarachnoid space or the ventricular system can cause TBM. Despite the fact that it has been long since the discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, remarkably little is known about the pathogenesis of TB of the nervous system. Future studies on M. tuberculosis and their interactions with the host immune system and the blood-brain barrier will lead to a better understanding of this disease, with the aim to overcome the considerable challenges in diagnosing, treating, and managing it.

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Abbreviations

BBB:

Blood-brain barrier

CNS:

Central nervous system

CSF:

Cerebrospinal fluid

TB:

Tuberculosis

TBM:

Tuberculous meningitis

TNF:

Tumor necrosis factor

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Mohammad A. Bosaeed MD, MB, SB-Med & Adel Alothman MB, FRCPC, FACP

  2. King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Mohammad A. Bosaeed MD, MB, SB-Med & Adel Alothman MB, FRCPC, FACP

  3. College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Adel Alothman MB, FRCPC, FACP

Authors
  1. Mohammad A. Bosaeed MD, MB, SB-Med
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  2. Adel Alothman MB, FRCPC, FACP
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mohammad A. Bosaeed MD, MB, SB-Med .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Adnan Menderes University, School of Medicine, Aydın, Turkey

    Mehmet Turgut

  2. Mohammed V University in Rabat, Avicenne Military Hospital of Marrakech, Rabat, Morocco

    Ali Akhaddar

  3. Hacettepe University, School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey

    Ahmet T. Turgut

  4. King George Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Ravindra K. Garg

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Bosaeed, M.A., Alothman, A. (2017). Pathogenesis of Tuberculosis of the Nervous System. In: Turgut, M., Akhaddar, A., Turgut, A., Garg, R. (eds) Tuberculosis of the Central Nervous System. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50712-5_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50712-5_3

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