WASHINGTON (TIP): In a breakthrough, US researchers have found that an improved tuberculosis vaccine can offer strong protection against leprosy. “This is the first study demonstrating that an improved vaccine against tuberculosis also offers cross-protection against Mycobacterium leprae, the causative agent of leprosy,” said Marcus A. Horwitz, a professor of medicine and microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics from University of California Los Angeles. That means that this vaccine has promise for better protecting against both major diseases at the same time. “It also demonstrates that boosting a recombinant BCG vaccine further improves cross-protection against leprosy,” Horwitz added.