Group | Clinical TB Research
Despite progress in the fight against tuberculosis (TB), TB remains a major global health problem. Innovative, high-quality research is needed to combat this poverty-related disease, which primarily affects the most vulnerable.
The mission of our Clinical TB Research Group is to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of TB and its comorbidities especially in high-burden countries. Our portfolio includes clinical trials, intervention studies, translational research and epidemiological studies.
Lines of research
The focus of our research activities is on the following areas:
- Community-based active case finding strategies for TB
- Clinical evaluation of new tools against TB with emphasis on diagnostics and biomarkers
- Host-directed therapies for TB
- Molecular epidemiology
- TB comorbidities
Klaus Reither
, PD Dr. med. et phil.
Group Leader
+41612848967
klaus.reither@swisstph.ch
Charles Abongomera
Aita Signorell
Rahel Erhardt
Nestani Tukvadze
Klaus Reither
Partners
Key Projects
TB Triage+ Community-based tuberculosis triage testing for hard-to-reach populations in Southern Africa
Tuberculosis is a poverty-related disease which particularly affects vulnerable and underserved populations. WHO has developed target product profiles for community-based TB triage testing. CAD4TB, an extensively validated digital chest x-ray analysis platform using deep-learning technology, and a blood test for C-reactive protein, which is a marker of inflammation or infection, are two very promising diagnostic tools which have the potential to meet the targets for TB triage. Read more
MistraL - Mitigation strategies for communities with COVID-19 transmission in Lesotho using artificial intelligence on chest x-rays and novel rapid diagnostic tests
For mitigation strategies to be effective and efficient against COVID-19, they must be context-specific and take local conditions into account. In low- and lower-middle-income countries, limited resources and fragile healthcare systems often dictate what is feasible. In this project, researchers combine artificial intelligence, portable chest X-ray machines and antigen-based diagnostic tests to enable and improve diagnosis of COVID-19 patients in settings with limited resources. Read more
TB-CAPT - Facilitating implementation of TB testing
TB-CAPT (Close the gap, increase Access, Provide adequate Therapy) will provide evidence for impactful implementation of tuberculosis (TB) and TB/HIV co-infection diagnostic strategies including drug-susceptibility testing through a series of trials in Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa. TB-CAPT is funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and will run for 3.5 years, with planned completion in 2023. Read more
Latest Publications
All PublicationsAwor P et al. Indigenous emergence and spread of kelch13 C469Y artemisinin-resistant Plasmodium falciparum in Uganda. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2024;68(8):e0165923. DOI: 10.1128/aac.01659-23
Bosman S et al. Evaluation of c-reactive protein and computer-aided analysis of chest x-rays as tuberculosis triage tests at health facilities in Lesotho and South Africa. Clin Infect Dis. 2024;79(5):1293-1302. DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciae378
Bresser M et al. Evaluation of COVID-19 antigen rapid diagnostic tests for self-testing in Lesotho and Zambia. PLoS One. 2024;19(2):e0280105. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280105
Buziashvili M, Djibuti M, Tukvadze N, DeHovitz J, Baliashvili D. Incidence rate and risk factors for developing active tuberculosis among people living with HIV in Georgia 2019-2020 cohort. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2024;11(9):ofae466. DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofae466
Centner C.M et al. Reflex Xpert MTB/XDR testing of residual rifampicin-resistant specimens: a clinical laboratory-based diagnostic accuracy and feasibility study in South Africa. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2024;11(8):ofae437. DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofae437