The Evolution of Tuberculosis: ASU Doctoral Student Examines the History of the Disease

Tuberculosis is an old disease dating back to the time before the ancient Egyptians, and it has been one of the major causes of deaths for thousands of years. Even in the 21st century, it remains one of the foremost killers of humans. In fact, every second of every day, someone is newly infected with the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and as many as two million people die of the disease each year.

Luz-Andrea Pfister, who is pursuing a Ph.D. in anthropology at ASU, is studying the co-evolutionary history of humans and Mycobacterium tuberculosis, in hopes of contributing to the understanding of this major public health problem. Pfister initially became interested in the subject the use of infectious agents as markers of population history, and in host-pathogen co-evolution, while researching viral pathogenesis at the University of Berne in Switzerland.
After receiving her medical degrees from the University of Chile and the University of Berne in Switzerland, Pfister decided to go to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) to study anthropology.

"I shifted to anthropology to study the evolution of infectious diseases and the impact of human adaptations in virulence and disease emergence," she says. "After completing my work at UNLV, I came to ASU to continue with the Ph.D. program to research the evolution of tuberculosis."

Pfister decided to come to ASU because professors at the university were conducting research similar to hers. "When I first presented my work to doctors in Switzerland, they told me that my research topic was too ambitious," she says. "Then I learned that there were researchers at ASU who were working on similar studies, and I made a choice to conduct my dissertation research here."

In September, the Graduate College (GC) awarded Pfister with a GC Doctoral Enrichment Fellowship for her strong record of achievement and the potential societal impact of her research. This fellowship will allow her to focus on her studies for an entire year, making the research process a bit more manageable for Pfister.

Pfister hopes that her research will help understand the evolution of the disease to find a way to better control, and perhaps eliminate, tuberculosis worldwide.


Upper photo: Pfister, pursuing a Ph.D. in anthropology, outside ASU's School of Human Evolution and Social Change.

Lower photo: Pfister hopes her research will help find a way to better control, and perhaps eliminate, tuberculosis worldwide.