Project description
New diagnostic platform to identify drug-resistant tuberculosis
Tuberculosis infects an estimated 25 % of the world population and killed 30 million people in total from 2000-2015, mostly in developing countries. Drug-resistant tuberculosis is on the rise with an estimated half a million new cases annually. There is an urgent need for simple, efficient, low-cost diagnostic tools for detection of multidrug-resistant strains, particularly, to enable point-of-care tests in developing countries. The EU-funded mfloDx project provides support for the development of a low-cost diagnostic platform that efficiently identifies drug-resistant cases. Pilot tests of the first model showed efficiency and specificity close to 92-96 %. The next-generation model is expected to have specificity close to 100 % and would be able to provide results in about 2 hours, reducing patient suffering and preventing spreading of resistant bacteria.
Objective
Tuberculosis (TB) killed 33 million people worldwide in 2000-2015 and infects an estimated ¼ of the world population. Drug-resistant forms of TB are flourishing at an alarming rate due to faulty diagnosis and widespread prescription of incorrect antibiotics. Rapid and accurate detection of multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains is urgently needed to effectively treat patients and prevent spreading of untreatable TB forms. Simple, low cost diagnostic tools are needed to enable point-of-care testing in low- and mid-income countries.
mfloDx is a low-cost, simple diagnostic platform that can identify close to 100% of drug resistant TB cases. Pilot tests of the first product, miniMDR-TB, showed the efficiency and specificity to be 92-96% in agreement with that of another molecular test recommended by the World Health Organization. Our next-generation mfloDx products, MDR-TB and MDR-TBplus, are expected to have close to 100% MDR-TB identification power. The low cost of mfloDx tests will enable market uptake in highly afflicted developing countries, and thereby help to stop the loss of life, the spread of antibiotic-resistant infections, and prevent unnecessary costs.
Projected global expenditure on diagnosis and treatment of TB will reach €983 billion between 2015-2030. The addressable market for TB diagnostics is projected to grow to €3.1 billion by 2024. Available commercial diagnostics for MDR-TB often deliver incomplete diagnoses and require long lag times, costly equipment (€15-32K), and highly trained personnel to recommend prescriptions. As a result, less than one-third of new TB patients undergo testing to determine appropriate antibiotic treatments. Our estimates suggest that mfloDx would reduce the treatment costs per MDR-TB patient by tens of thousands of euros and diagnosis time from about six months to two hours. This would avoid costly and inappropriate antibiotic regimens, reduce patient suffering, and curtail the spread of drug-resistant bacteria.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologybacteriology
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinepneumologytuberculosis
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacypharmaceutical drugsantibiotics
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacydrug resistancemultidrug resistance
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
171 65 Stockholm
Sweden
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.