Human alveolar and splenic macrophage populations display a disctinct transcriptomic response to infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infects alveolar macrophages (AMs) causing pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), the more frequent form of the disease. Less frequently, Mtb disseminates to many other organs and tissues resulting in different extrapulmonary forms of TB. Nevertheless, very few studies have addressed the global mRNA response of human AMs, in particular from humans with the active form of the disease. Strikingly, almost no studies have addressed the response to infection with Mtb by human extrapulmonary macrophages. Total RNA obtained from alveolar macrophages from TB patientients infected with clinical isolates of Mtb to compared to alveolar macrophages from control subjects. Total RNA from splenic macrophages obtained from spleen slices from deceased donor and infected in vitro with clinical isolates of Mtb to compared splenic macrophages noninfected.