Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. While 10% of individuals with infected TB become symptomatic, in about 90% the infection remains latent without manifestation of the disease for the rest of their lives. In 1999, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared tuberculosis a global emergency causing nearly three million deaths annually. In the same year, WHO reported that there were 3.7 million cases of tuberculosis of which 20% of patients came from Africa, 38% from Southeast Asia, 22% from Western Pacifc, 6% from the United States, and 4% from the eastern Mediterranean.