The StatinTB consortium published an article titled “Immunomodulatory effects of atorvastatin on peripheral blood mononuclear cells infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis” in Frontiers in Immunology on 3 July 2025 (https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2025.1597534). The publication investigates the efficacy of statins as a host-directed therapy for tuberculosis (TB) by studying the immunomodulatory effects of atorvastatin on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) infected with various Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) strains.

Current prolonged TB treatments (at least six months) often lead to non-adherence, drug resistance, and severe post-TB lung diseases. Therefore, host-directed therapies are urgently needed to enhance the host’s immune response, and statins, like atorvastatin, are compelling candidates due to their known immunomodulatory effects.

The StatinTB team, led by Dr. Solima Sabeel and Prof. Reto Guler from the University of Cape Town, found that atorvastatin significantly reduces intracellular mycobacterial replication in a dose-dependent manner by enhancing host protective functions, such as phagosome maturation, autophagy, and apoptosis in Mtb-infected PBMCs. These findings underscore atorvastatin’s potential to activate key host immune pathways that protect against TB. They reinforce its promise as a host-directed therapy, with the potential to improve lung function and long-term health outcomes in people affected by tuberculosis.