Fighting an ancient disease at Surrey: modern understandings of tuberculosis

At Surrey, a team of scientists are dedicated to researching TB, a disease which causes millions of deaths each year and which is on the rise in the UK. Dr Dany Beste, Dr Suzie Hingley-Wilson and Professor Graham Stewart are leading Surrey’s advancements in this field and tell us about what they’re doing to better understand and treat the disease.

On 24 March 1882 (a date that now marks World TB Day each year), Dr Robert Koch announced that he had discovered the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB). 143 years later and tuberculosis is still the number one cause of death by infectious disease, killing one person every 25 seconds.

Tuberculosis disproportionately impacts society's most marginalised populations but it receives only a fraction of the funding and resources allocated to diseases that affect individuals across all socioeconomic levels equally.

In 2024, the UK saw an 11% increase in the number of tuberculosis cases, and globally cases increased to their highest recorded levels, making it the world’s deadliest infectious disease. Years of under-funding has meant that there are limited options for the prevention and treatment of tuberculosis and antibiotic resistance complicates treatment.

At Surrey, we have a unique critical mass of scientists focused on understanding the basic biology of the causative agent of tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, with the goal of translating this basic knowledge into new diagnostics, novel treatments and prevention strategies to curb the tide of the disease.

Scientists at Surrey are also applying their expertise with the human infection to zoonotic tuberculosis, which occurs in cattle and other animals, to maximise the impact of their discoveries. In the UK, bovine tuberculosis represents one of the largest veterinary health problems costing the taxpayer of £100 million per year. In support of the Faculty of Health and Medical Science’s One Health, One Medicine vision, and to synergise research in veterinary and human disease, the University has invested £4 million in state-of-the-art high-containment infectious disease laboratories.

And it’s not just our academics that get involved in tuberculosis research. Through opportunities in final-year undergraduate research projects and PhD courses, our students are making advancements of their own.

George Mayson, Biosciences and Medicine PhD

“I am passionate about the survival strategies of tuberculosis and exploring such a diverse and complex pathological system. Within my research I aim to better our understanding of mycobacterial mechanisms of drug tolerance, in the hope of discovering novel therapeutic strategies to curb the tide of tuberculosis.”

Jordan Pascoe, Biosciences and Medicine PhD

“Antibiotic resistance is a major impediment to tuberculosis disease control. We now have practically incurable 'extremely drug-resistant' strains of tuberculosis circulating in many countries. It is my hope that, through my research, I can help support the wider biology field in the development of therapeutics and ultimately save lives.”

Richa Shrestha, Veterinary Biosciences BSc

“My final-year research project is focused on the development of novel therapies for tuberculosis, which remains an important disease for humans but is also a significant issue for animals. This project has made me consider a research career, so I can contribute to advancing our understanding of animal health and behaviour.”