Health Diagnostics

To develop a diagnostic assay that will simultaneously detect and quantify p.falciparum in patients. It will be non-invasive, easily adaptable, hence improve patient compliance and management, leading to reduced mortality from unreliable lab results.

We will develop a low cost disposable test for rapidly diagnosing malaria in low resource settings. This test will be based on direct molecular detection of malaria RNA in unprocessed blood to determine which malaria strains are present in

This project addresses the problem of hundreds of antibiotics being available on the market but only a few are effective to treat tuberculosis. Developing new drugs is a long (10-15 years) and expensive (~$800 millions) process. Identification of synergistic combinations using drugs approved for other therapeutic applications can allow the introduction of new tuberculosis therapies in shorter time. Follow Santiago Ramon-Garcia on Twitter @s_ramongarcia"

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is one of the most widely used tests for detecting and measuring disease markers; however, its current format is not suitable for use in the developing world. This project will develop a low-cost, paper-based diagnostic device that will enable rapid and sensitive ELISA in resource-limited settings.

Combining a unique diagnostic platform for decentralized blood testing with a two-way communications network for data capture, and the training and supervision of community-level health workers (Kenya) Access to decentralized diagnostics can save millions of lives globally, yet the lack of supervision and training opportunities for overburdened nurses and community health workers in remote settings can negatively affect quality of testing and care provided.

We will develop a portable, fast device that detects HIV RNA, and thus earliest detection possible (9 days). As it can be made at $1 per test, the test can be widely implemented in developing countries. No rapid test can currently detect any RNA.

We are designing a pilot trial in Rwanda for its Gene-RADAR® platform, a portable, low cost, point-of-care diagnostic that quantifies viral load of HIV strains in under an hour; without the need for conventional lab infrastructure. This will provide life-saving treatment for people living with HIV and prevent the spread of drug-resistant strains in Africa and beyond.

In CIRCB the overall objective of the project titled ""Optimization of a novel Biomarker for point-of-care (POC) monitoring of HIV-1 infection and HIV vaccine development,"shall be to develop and assess a novel biomarker for monitoring of HIV-1 infection in limited resource settings. Affordable rapid strategies for monitoring HIV-1 infection evolution at the bedside in resource limited countries would greatly increase coverage and expedite vaccine development. Follow Chantal Biya International Reference Center for HIV/AIDS Yaounde Cameroon on Twitter @CIRCBYaounde"

We will develop an inexpensive, easy-to-use quantitative sensor that can detect and count antibodies that are diagnostic of HIV infection and progression. This technology will benefit global health by enabling everybody to monitor its disease state thus reducing transmission.

CD4 T cell counts are an essential part of monitoring the progression and treatment of HIV patients; a service that is unavailable in most resource poor regions in the world. Canadian and African researchers are partnering to test low cost point-of-care HIV monitoring devices, which are purpose-built to be rugged, reliable and cost effective.