The study published in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens (http://www.plospathogens.org/doi/ppat.1000034), found people most likely to develop TB meningitis were those who carried a variant of the TLR2 gene and who get infected with the Beijing TB strain, prevalent in Asia and the former Soviet states. Previous studies have linked TLR2 to the immune system and it seems to be important for recognizing and initiating a defensive response to the TB bacteria. The researchers took bacteria samples from 187 patients who suffered tuberculous meningitis and 236 other patients who suffered the more common pulmonary tuberculosis. Most of the patients then had their genes analyzed to see if they carried the TLR2 variant. "Together, these results suggest that the association of the (variant gene) with tuberculous meningitis is strongest among those infected with the Beijing lineage," the scientists wrote. Read more at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080328/hl_nm/tuberculosis_vietnam_dc;_ylt=AgW0rUBksa8r1CC2yeIrjLAQ.3QA