Latent Tuberculosis Infection: New Insights into Persistence, Detection, and Prevention

Latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) represents one of the greatest reservoirs of future disease in the global fight against tuberculosis, with an estimated one-quarter of the world's population harboring Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a dormant or subclinical state.

Despite decades of research, the biological mechanisms that allow the bacterium to persist within the host, evade immune clearance, and eventually reactivate remain incompletely understood. This gap in knowledge continues to hinder the development of reliable diagnostic tools capable of distinguishing true latent infection from cleared exposure, as well as the design of preventive therapies that can shorten treatment courses and reduce the burden of reactivation disease.

This Research Topic aims to bring together current research addressing the complex host-pathogen interactions that underlie M. tuberculosis persistence. We welcome contributions exploring the molecular and immunological basis of bacterial dormancy, including the role of granuloma dynamics, hypoxia adaptation, metabolic shifts, and non-replicating persister states.
Equally, we invite studies examining the host immune correlates of latency, such as T-cell exhaustion, cytokine signatures, and the spectrum of infection outcomes ranging from sterilizing immunity to subclinical incipient disease.

A second major focus of this collection is diagnostics. Current tools, including the tuberculin skin test and interferon-gamma release assays, are limited in their ability to predict progression to active disease. We therefore encourage submissions on novel biomarkers, transcriptomic and proteomic signatures, and emerging diagnostic platforms that could improve risk stratification and guide targeted preventive treatment. Research on point-of-care technologies and their feasibility in high-burden, resource-limited settings is also of strong interest, given the operational importance of early identification of individuals at highest risk of reactivation.

Finally, this Research Topic will address prevention strategies, including advances in preventive chemotherapy regimens, host-directed therapies aimed at reinforcing immune containment, and vaccine candidates designed to prevent reactivation rather than primary infection. We are particularly interested in work that bridges basic pathogen and host biology with translational or clinical applications, helping to close the loop between mechanistic discovery and public health impact.

We welcome Original Research, Reviews, Mini Reviews, Perspective, and Systematic Review articles that advance the understanding of M. tuberculosis persistence, improve detection of latent infection, or propose innovative prevention strategies. By consolidating current knowledge and highlighting unresolved questions, this collection aims to support the global effort to end tuberculosis by addressing one of its most persistent and underappreciated challenges: the vast, largely silent reservoir of latent infection.


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: Latent tuberculosis infection, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, dormancy, granuloma, host-pathogen interaction, biomarkers, diagnostics, preventive therapy, reactivation, host-directed 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.