TB remains a disease of global and regional significance, with infection rates in the West Midlands exceeding the national average. Our research serves to demonstrate that current TB blood tests can be modified to enhance diagnostic yield. Advancements in TB diagnostics serve to improve disease stratification, support timely and appropriate clinical decision-making, and contribute to more positive patient outcomes.
Diagnostic blood tests for tuberculosis (TB) offer several advantages over traditional tests such as the tuberculin skin test and sputum-based methods. However, current blood tests cannot accurately distinguish between patients with latent and active disease. This presents a major limitation, as additional investigations are required to accurately determine infection status and guide patient management.
QuantiFERON-TB (QFT) is an interferon gamma (IFNγ) release assay for the detection of TB infection in whole blood. Studies have shown that incoporation of TruCulture media at the blood collection stage of the QFT test effectively permits the stratification of latent v’s active TB patients (Duffy et al, 2021). It is proposed that TruC media dampens non-specific immune activation within the sample, notably from monocyte cells. Analogous to ‘noise reduction’, the turning off interfering monocytes improves the clarity of the Tb-specific signal within the test, enabling more accurate disease.
Building on Duffy and colleagues works, this project aims to characterise and quantify the extent of non-specific monocyte activation within the QFT system. We will also advance current understanding of the mechanisms underlying TruC-mediated enhancement of disease stratification and investigate the efficacy of alternative monocyte inhibitors.
Project team
Project lead: Dr Marie Voice, Lecturer in Biomedical Science, BCU
Project lead: Dr Alba Llibre Serradell, Assistant Professor, University of Birmingham
Collaborator: Dr Zac Newland-Smith, Rearch Support Technician
For further information on the project, please contact Marie.voice@bcu.ac.uk.