Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major health threat in human and farm animals. Novel diagnostic kits capable of differentiating between active and latent infections should improve clinical outcome.
Diagnosis of human and bovine TB is extremely difficult, time-consuming and inefficient. Currently, there is no diagnostic test that can differentiate between active and latent TB. Mycobacterium tuberculosis replicates within phagosomes of macrophages and commonly causes latent infections of the lung, 5 % of which will lead to active disease. In addition, HIV patients present with a 200-fold higher risk of developing TB as an opportunistic infection.
Further details: Tuberculosis diagnostics advanced