Abstract

The ability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to enter into a non-replicating state that is not strongly affected by standard antibiotics necessitates long treatment regimens, leading to poor patient compliance that can promote the emergence of drug-resistant strains. Reporting in Nature, Lin and colleagues show that selective inhibition of the mycobacterial proteasome with certain oxathiazol-2-one compounds might be useful in targeting this non-replicating state, suggesting a novel approach to combat one of the most prevalent infectious diseases in the developing world.