The potential of herbal medicine as a promising complement and synergistic effects with anti-tuberculosis drugs: Term and condition apply

Tuberculosis (TB), a disease that can be both prevented and typically cured, likely became the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent again in 2023, after being surpassed by COVID-19 for three years.Tuberculosis resulted in nearly twice as many deaths as HIV/AIDS.Each year, over 10 million people continue to contract TB, with this number increasing since 2021.Immediate action is essential to eradicate the global TB epidemic by 2030, a goal endorsed by all United Nations Member States and the World Health Organization. 1 Though modern antibiotics like rifampicin and isoniazid have been instrumental in the fight against TB, the emergence of drug-resistant strains and the challenges associated with long-term therapy have led to renewed interest in alternative treatments.In 2022, it was estimated that around 410,000 new cases of multidrug-resistant or rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (MDR/RR-TB) occurred.Over the past years, recent research into new drugs and treatment medication has led to the improvement and evaluation of several promising new treatment regimens for TB. 2 One of the promising research domains is the exploration of herbal medicine as a potential treatment and management for TB.Herbal medicine, as a centuries-old practice found across various cultures, involves using whole plants or plant extracts for curing and therapeutic purposes.Several traditional herbal remedies have been known and listed in different pharmacopoeias around the world, with several of them displaying notable antimicrobial compounds. 3The exploration for novel TB treatments has developed to incorporate plants from traditional medicine globally, such as in Indonesia, Ayurveda (India and surrounds), traditional Chinese medicine, and African herbal medicine. [4][5]5][6] Researchers are progressively devoted to investigating these traditional remedies, hoping that they may provide novel approaches to addressing the challenges of tuberculosis, particularly in the context of rapid increase of drug resistance. 7erbal medicines as whole plants or compounds offer several mechanisms of action that could be beneficial in the fight against TB.It might be containing antibacterial material that demonstrates direct antibacterial effects against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.These compounds can either destroy the bacteria (bactericidal effect) or inhibit their growth (bacteriostatic effect), making them potential candidates for adjunctive treatment in TB therapy. 3,5Another mechanism of the herbal compound is immunomodulation, as herbal medicines can help modulate the immune system by enhancing the body's natural defence mechanisms to eliminate the bacteria.This mechanism of action is very important since it can help in clearing the infection more effectively and reduce the risk of complications in TB patients with weakened immunity, as TB patients often suffer from other clinical conditions such as HIV/AIDS and diabetes mellitus. 1,7erbal compounds are also can have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant materials, so they can