Saturday 21 August 2010

TUBERCULOSIS: Singapore invests in tuberculosis research

Aug. 12 -- An investment of 3 million Singapore dollars (about 2.2 million U.S. dollars) is being pumped into tuberculosis (TB) research in Singapore, the country's Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) said on Thursday.
The project, joined by A*STAR's Singapore Immunology Network and bioindustrial group Institut Merieux, involves setting up a joint laboratory in Singapore to investigate and identify novel biomarkers that could allow early identification of individuals at risk of TB disease development and disease reactivation.
At the shared lab, researchers will study the immune cells in the blood of infected individuals without active TB, and compare them with those in individuals with active TB, as well as non- infected healthy controls. Any change in gene expression and behavior of the immune cells will then be analyzed to identify biomarkers associated with TB infection and/or TB re-activation.
This information would be pertinent to clinicians and researchers as current tests cannot reliably detect if the individual is at risk of developing the disease. This will lead to early and accurate assessment of the effectiveness of treatment in TB patients.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/health/2010-08/12/c_13441629.htm

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