We evaluated a patient with disseminated Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium chelonae infection, of which he died. He also developed autoimmune (type I) diabetes and primary hypothyroidism. His serum contained a high titer of immunoglobulin G autoantibody to interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) capable of blocking in vitro responses to this cytokine by peripheral blood mononuclear cells from normal donors. These results suggest that autoantibodies to IFN-gamma can induce susceptibility to disseminated mycobacterial infection, which may be refractory to chemotherapy.

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The extracts of 14 Julianaceae and 5 Clusiaceae species growing in Mexico were tested in vitro (50 µg/mL) against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv and HIV reverse transcriptase (HIV-RT). The Julianaceae bark and leaf extracts inhibited M. tuberculosis (>84.67%) and HIV-RT (<49.89%). The Clusiaceae leaves extracts also inhibited both targets (>58.3% and >67.6%), respectively. The IC50 values for six selected extracts and their cytotoxicity (50 µg/mL) to human macrophages were then determined. Amphipterygium glaucum, A. molle, and A. simplicifolium fairly inhibited M. tuberculosis with IC50 of 1.87–2.35 µg/mL; but their IC50 against HIV-RT was 59.25–97.83 µg/mL. Calophyllum brasiliense, Vismia baccifera, and Vismia mexicana effect on M. tuberculosis was noteworthy (IC50 3.02–3.64 µg/mL) and also inhibited RT-HIV (IC50 26.24–35.17 µg/mL). These 6 extracts (50 µg/mL) presented low toxicity to macrophages (<23.8%). The HPLC profiles of A. glaucum, A. molle, and A. simplicifolium indicated that their antimycobacterial activity cannot be related to masticadienonic, 3α, or 3β-hydromasticadienonic acids, suggesting that other compounds may be responsible for the observed activity or this might be a synergy result. The anti-HIV-RT and antimycobacterial activities induced by C. brasiliense can be attributed to the content of calanolides A, B, as well as soulatrolide.

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