Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42649201›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

Inflammatory biomarkers of asymptomatic and symptomatic tuberculosis.

Denis Awany, Dominique T Ariefdien, Simon C Mendelsohn, Virginie Rozot, Humphrey Mulenga, Sarah Nyangu, Michele Tameris, Tumelo Moloantoa, Austin Katona, Fernanda Maruri and 25 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

35 authors.

Denis AwanySouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Dominique T AriefdienSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Simon C MendelsohnSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-4054-2766
Virginie RozotSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0001-9757-1501
Humphrey MulengaSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Sarah NyanguSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Michele TamerisSouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-7983-7203
Tumelo MoloantoaPerinatal HIV Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Austin KatonaVanderbilt Tuberculosis Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Fernanda MaruriVanderbilt Tuberculosis Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Firdows NoorSouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Ravindre PanchiaPerinatal HIV Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Khuthadzo HlongwanePerinatal HIV Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Kim StanleySouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Yuri F van der HeijdenVanderbilt Tuberculosis Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7631-9796
Katie HadleySouth African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Andrew- Fiore GartlandVaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7627-2166
Craig InnesThe Aurum Institute, Johannesburg, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-6872-5687
William BrumskineVanderbilt Tuberculosis Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-1092-9919
Keertan DhedaCentre for Lung Infection and Immunity, Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medicine and UCT Lung Institute and South African MRC/UCT Centre for the Study of Antimicrobial Resistance, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0001-7709-5341
Shameem JaumdallyCentre for Lung Infection and Immunity, Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medicine and UCT Lung Institute and South African MRC/UCT Centre for the Study of Antimicrobial Resistance, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Tahlia PerumalCentre for Lung Infection and Immunity, Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medicine and UCT Lung Institute and South African MRC/UCT Centre for the Study of Antimicrobial Resistance, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0003-0679-5804
Neil MartinsonPerinatal HIV Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Al LeslieAfrica Health Research Institute, Durban, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0003-2538-6467
Bernard FourieDepartment of Medical Microbiology, University of Pretoria Faculty of Health Sciences, Pretoria, South Africa.
Andriëtte HiemstraSouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Stephanus T MalherbeSouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-7563-8231
Gerhard WalzlSouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0003-2487-125X
Kogieleum NaidooCentre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), Durban, South Africa.
Gavin ChurchyardThe Aurum Institute, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Novel N ChegouSouth African Medical Research Council Centre for TB Research; Division of Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-8690-1699
Timothy R SterlingVanderbilt Tuberculosis Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Mark Hatherill *South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0003-3491-1809
Thomas J Scriba *South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine and Division of Immunology, Department of Pathology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa. Thomas.scriba@uct.ac.za.ORCID 0000-0002-0641-1359
RePORT South Africa Study

Funding

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) OPP1137034
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

A large proportion of individuals with tuberculosis (TB) are asymptomatic. The biological and inflammatory underpinnings of asymptomatic TB are unknown and may differ from symptomatic TB. We characterise blood transcriptomic and proteomic profiles in South African community screening vs. health facility-based triage cohorts. Asymptomatic TB shares core transcriptomic and proteomic features with symptomatic TB, including upregulation of innate, interferon and inflammatory pathways and downregulation of T and B cell pathways. Integration of transcriptomic and proteomic data from asymptomatic TB individuals identifies two distinct sub-clusters characterized by higher or lower bacterial burden, blood IFN-γ responses, BMI, and chest radiographic abnormalities, suggesting different disease severity. We identify a new blood transcriptomic signature of asymptomatic TB. However, diagnostic performance of transcriptomic and proteomic markers is weaker for asymptomatic TB than symptomatic TB, suggesting that policy development for community-based, asymptomatic TB screening should not adopt biomarkers developed for symptomatic TB triage without further optimization.

Indexed as

BiomarkersInflammationTuberculosisAdultAsymptomatic InfectionsFemaleGene Expression ProfilingHumansInterferon-gammaMaleMycobacterium tuberculosisProteomicsSouth AfricaTranscriptomeBiomarkersInterferon-gamma

Identifiers

PMID42649201
PMCPMC13518882

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.