EATING the right kind of fat might help people with tuberculosis conquer the disease. But consuming the wrong kinds of fats, especially fish oils, could help TB bacteria evade destruction.
That is the picture emerging from experiments with macrophages, the white blood cells that normally engulf and destroy invading microbes. After overwhelming the bacteria, macrophages trap them in a chamber inside the cell called a phagosome. This then fuses with another chamber, called a lysosome, which contains digestive enzymes that destroy the invader (see Graphic).
But this does not happen when Mycobacterium tuberculosis is engulfed. “This bug has learned…
