SynthesisBMJ open2023
Transforming growth factor-β and matrix metalloproteinases as potential biomarkers of fibrotic lesions induced by tuberculosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.
- Post-Tuberculosis Lung Disease: Clinicopathologic Insights, Diagnosis, Prevention, and Management.MedComm · 2026Review
- Bacterial load and transforming growth factor-beta: Predicting the extent of lung damage in pulmonary tuberculosis patients.World journal of experimental medicine · 2026Article
- HMGB1 Upregulates MMP-1-Mediated Mesothelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Promotes Pleural Fibrosis in Tuberculous Pleural Effusion.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Platelet-leucocyte interactions drive MMP-mediated tissue damage in tuberculosis.PLoS pathogens · 2026Article
- The interplay of tuberculosis and COVID-19: Insights into global health challenges.Journal of biosciences · 2025Review
- The value of LAM and LprG in extracellular vesicles in the diagnostic and therapeutic field of renal tuberculosis.Frontiers in tuberculosis · 2025Review
- Advances in the awareness of tuberculosis-associated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.Chinese medical journal pulmonary and critical care medicine · 2024Review
- Macrophage-derived extracellular vesicles fromFrontiers in immunology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesVery few studies and limited information are available regarding the mechanism of fibrosis in tuberculosis (TB). This study aimed to identify, describe and synthesise potential biomarkers of the development of tissue fibrosis induced by TB through a systematic method and meta-analysis.
methodsA literature search was performed using keywords according to the topic from electronic databases (ScienceDirect and PubMed) and other methods (websites, organisations and citations). Studies that matched predetermined eligibility criteria were included. The quality assessment tool used was the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Score 2, and the data obtained were processed using Review Manager V.5.3.
resultsOf the 305 studies, 7 met the eligibility criteria with a total sample of 365. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the post-TB group of patients with pulmonary parenchymal fibrosis had a higher transforming growth factor (TGF)-β level (6.09) than the control group (1.82), with a 4.27 (95% CI: 0.92 to 7.61) mean difference. Moreover, patients with residual pleural thickening post-TB had a higher mean of TGF-β (0.61) than the control group (0.56), with a 0.05 (95% CI: 0.04 to 0.06) mean difference. Besides TGF-β, our qualitative synthesis also found that matrix metalloproteinase-1 might have a role in forming and developing pulmonary tissue fibrosis, thus, could be used as a predictor marker in the formation of fibrotic lesions in patients with TB. In addition, several other biomarkers were assessed in the included studies, such as tumour necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-4, IL-8, IL-10, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and platelet-derived growth factor. However, this study is not intended to examine these biomarkers.
conclusionsThere were differences in the results of TGF-β levels in patients with fibrotic lesions compared with controls. TGF-β might be a biomarker of fibrotic tissue formation or increased pulmonary tissue fibrosis in post-TB patients. However, further studies are needed on a larger scale.
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