Somewhat obscuring the interpretation, a negative correlation between triple IFNγ/IL-2/TNF+ cells and bacterial load in pulmonary TB has also been suggested, with levels inversely correlated to sputum smear grade and then gradually increasing during TBD treatment (41) while another study (39) concluded that triple+ frequencies were the same as in controls following successful TBD treatment. Here, IFNG is linked to pulmonary tuberculosis.