Immunometabolic Targets for Host-Directed Therapy in Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis remains a major global health challenge, compounded by prolonged treatment regimens, drug resistance, variable treatment responses, and persistent host tissue damage. While conventional therapies primarily target Mycobacterium tuberculosis, there is growing interest in host-directed therapy as a complementary strategy to improve treatment outcomes, reduce pathological inflammation, and enhance antimicrobial immunity. The interaction between Mycobacterium tuberculosis and the host immune system is deeply influenced by metabolic reprogramming within immune cells and infected tissues, with changes in glucose, lipid, amino acid, and mitochondrial metabolism shaping macrophage activation, T-cell function, inflammatory signaling, granuloma biology, and bacterial persistence. These immunometabolic adaptations may either support host protection or be exploited by the pathogen to promote survival and immune evasion.

Recent advances have identified multiple pathways with therapeutic potential, including those involved in glycolysis, oxidative phosphorylation, lipid handling, glutamine metabolism, redox balance, autophagy, and immune signaling networks. As interest grows in host-directed strategies beyond conventional antimicrobials, there is a clear need for a focused platform to examine how immunometabolic insights can be translated into new therapies, adjunctive treatment strategies, and more precise approaches to tuberculosis management.

This Research Topic aims to bring together cutting-edge contributions exploring immunometabolic mechanisms that can be leveraged for host-directed therapy in tuberculosis. By highlighting novel targets, therapeutic candidates, and translational approaches, this collection seeks to advance the development of innovative interventions that improve patient outcomes and address unmet clinical needs in tuberculosis care. We are particularly interested in studies addressing molecular and cellular mechanisms, therapeutic target discovery, immunomodulatory compounds, repurposed agents, combination approaches, and preclinical or clinical evaluation of host-directed interventions. We welcome Original Research, Review, Mini Review, Methods, Perspective, and other article types accepted by the journal that align with the scope of the section, with contributions emphasizing innovative therapeutic relevance and advancing understanding of how immunometabolic targets may be harnessed to improve tuberculosis treatment.

Relevant themes include, but are not limited to:
• Macrophage and monocyte metabolism
• T-cell and innate immune cell metabolic regulation
• Lipid metabolism and foamy macrophages
• Glutamine and amino acid metabolism
• Mitochondrial dysfunction and bioenergetics
• Autophagy and metabolic control of host defense
• Inflammatory damage and immune resolution
• Metabolic biomarkers of treatment response
• Therapeutic strategies aimed at improving antimicrobial efficacy or limiting immunopathology


If you are interested in submitting or have any questions please contact the journal email: tuberculosis@frontiersin.org

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review

Keywords: Tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Host-directed therapy, Immunometabolism, Therapeutic targets, Adjunctive therapy

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.