Mycobacterium tuberculosis strictly depends on oxygen to multiply, and the terminal oxidases are a vital part of the oxidative phosphorylation pathway. The bacterium possesses two aerobic respiratory branches: a cytochrome bcc-aa₃ and a bacteria-specific cytochrome bd oxidase. The identification of small-molecule inhibitors of the cytochrome bcc-aa₃ under numerous experimental conditions reflects the essentiality of the pathway for the optimum growth of M. tuberculosis. Recent findings on the biology of the cytochrome bcc-aa₃ as well as the report of the first high-resolution structure of a mycobacterial cytochrome bcc-aa₃ complex will help in the characterization and further development of potent inhibitors. Although the aerobic cytochrome bd respiratory branch is not strictly essential for growth, the discovery of a strong synthetic lethal interaction with the cytochrome bcc-aa₃ placed the cytochrome bd oxidase under the spotlight as an attractive drug target for its synergistic role in potentiating the efficacy of cytochrome bcc-aa₃ inhibitors and other drugs targeting oxidative phosphorylation. In this review, we are discussing current knowledge about the two mycobacterial aerobic respiratory branches, their potential as drug targets, as well as potential drawbacks.

结核分枝杆菌严格依赖氧来繁殖，并且末端氧化酶是氧化磷酸化途径的重要组成部分。该细菌具有两个有氧呼吸分支：细胞色素bcc-aa ₃和细菌特异性细胞色素bd氧化酶。在许多实验条件下对细胞色素bcc-aa ₃小分子抑制剂的鉴定反映了结核分枝杆菌最佳生长途径的必要性。关于细胞色素bcc-aa ₃生物学的最新发现以及分枝杆菌细胞色素bcc-aa ₃的第一个高分辨率结构的报告复合物将有助于有效抑制剂的表征和进一步开发。尽管有氧细胞色素bd呼吸分支对生长并不是严格必需的，但与细胞色素bcc-aa ₃的强烈合成致死相互作用的发现使细胞色素bd氧化酶成为吸引人的药物靶标，因为其协同作用增强了药效。细胞色素bcc-aa ₃抑制剂和其他靶向氧化磷酸化的药物。在这篇综述中，我们正在讨论有关两个分枝杆菌需氧呼吸分支的当前知识，它们作为药物靶标的潜力以及潜在的弊端。