Division of Infection and Immunity

Our Centre

Many members of our Centre are not based at the Royal Free campus - our geographical spread is broad and includes the Gower Street Campus, Mona Campus UWI, HPA Porton Down, Colindale & RMN at Barts & London, and DSTL Porton Down - and we aim to ensure that all parts of the network are reflected by the Centre's activities and publications.

Despite the distractions of the first half of this year with staff moving to the Free from the Windeyer, there has been substantial activity by the working groups and here are a few highlights that have come to my attention and give a flavour of the diversity in the Centre.

HCAI

This group has held several well attended meetings and the theme has been further supported by UCLP. Dr Peter Wilson’s research team has relocated to the Royal Free Campus and we hope this will help collaborative working and allow the HCAI group to flourish.

TB

International research programmes continue to be a focus of the Centre. The projects led by Professor Ali Zumla are reflected in publications and further funding and REMoxTB, for which I am UCL lead, has achieved recruitment of  1600 patients and is on track to complete the recruitment phase of the study by December 2012. We have secured further funding to ensure stability for staff and publications are beginning to appear from this project.

TB research is not just located in the Centre and so in a new initiative we have instigated a UCL TB Strategy Group to encourage communication and collaboration in TB research across the College. The enthusiasm for this was demonstrated at the World TB day event  and at the UCLP TB meeting  (November, 2010) and has been reflected in new grant proposals and collaborative projects.

Education

The Centre is the home for 3 MSc programmes. The MSc Infection & Immunity is now entering its third year and as I write has enrolled 42 students: good news in terms of our reputation and cash flow although it will be challenging to find projects. The MSc in Medical Mycology is gradually increasing its international clientele and continues to provide training in this critical area of expertise. An important development is the start of the new MSc/PG Dip in Healthcare associated Infection Control, led by Susan Hopkins and again utilising our combined expertise in this area. Enrolment for this blended programme is currently 7 students.

I am pleased to note that Ms Ndekya Oriyo has been awarded her doctorate and reduced our compliment of current research students to 13 (8 in I&I) working from the RF, HPA Colindale, HPA, Barts & London, Tanzania and Jamaica.

Mycology

The introduction of MALDI-TOFF to the RF department has provided a focus for the mycology theme since Easter. Moving rapidly to develop expertise and apply it to clinical research we are already seeing the first papers submitted from this group. The fungal work is being pursued in parallel with studies of the use of MALDI-TOFF in diagnosis of sepsis.

Molecular diagnosis

Molecular diagnosis has been a key theme of the Centre and is an area that will be strengthened by the combined resources of the groups now co-located at the RF. This is an area that will have increased focus in the new academic year particularly with Ali Zumla's EDCTP funded projects for enhanced diagnosis of TB; an NIHR funded projected addressing rapid diagnosis in hard to reach groups led by Andrew Haywood with support from Marc Lipman and myself, and NIHR- and MRC-funded projects on the role of infection in COPD with Respiratory Medicine for which I lead the microbiology. A good example of an area that our combined resource will consider is the management of sepsis in with Bambos Charalambous and Ali Zumla are combining to develop.

The aim of CCM is to deliver research, training and education of the highest standard in infectious diseases.

London is a cosmopolitan city and this provides an exciting environment to study infectious diseases, however, our work in London is placed into a global context by our international collaborations of which our relationships with UTH, Lusaka, Zambia (led by Professor Zumla, Windeyer Institute) and KCMC, Moshi, Tanzania (led from the Royal Free) are the longest established. Whilst focussed on delivery of high quality research, relevant to the location, our collaborations have been underpinned by a commitment to capacity development both in people and infrastructure.  

A number of researchers in the Centre are part of UCL's Institute for Global Health and the Institute's Grand Challenges programme; you can find out more about the Institute here.

Research in the Centre reflects the challenges presented by a diagnostic service in central London, thus our main research themes are:

• Molecular diagnosis
• Tuberculosis
• Mycology
• Respiratory infections
• Evolution of antibiotic resistance
• Hospital Acquired Infection

Support for our work comes from substantial funding from the EU, EDCTP (read more here), MRC, Wellcome Trust , NIHR and the Gates Foundation amongst others.  Our MRC-funded project to develop collaboration between TB research groups in the UK has it's kick-off conference in January - read more about TBD-UK here.

We believe that our training programmes for Clinical Microbiologists are second to none and course developments are grounded in our research practice and findings.

We provide programmes to undergraduate science and medicine students, postgraduate taught courses as well as providing academic support for continuing professional development for all grades of Health Care Scientist and Medical Trainees. Details of the programmes we run can be found here.  The Centre provides research training through PhD and MD programmes closely aligned with our research interests.

The courses we currently offer (session 2011/2012) are as follows:

Postgraduate taught/distance learning:
MSc/PG Diploma/PG Cert Medical Mycology;
MSc/PG Diploma/PG Cert Infection and Immunity;
MSc/Postgraduate Diploma in Healthcare associated Infection Control

Research Degrees: MPhil/PhD

Dr Helen Donoghue

2012

..This follow-up study from a paper published in Clinical Infectious Diseases in 2001 suggests a new theory for the acquisition of TB, possibly due to contact with the large herds of bison that potentially could have been a reservoir host.

Authors:Lee OY-C, Wu HHT, Donoghue HD, Spigelman M, Greenblatt CL, et al. (2012)
Title: Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Lipid Virulence Factors Preserved in the 17,000-Year-Old Skeleton of an Extinct Bison, Bison antiquus.
Journal Reference: PLoS ONE 7(7): e41923. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0041923
Download: PDF

..In this case report for the journal Spine, the authors describe the effect of TB on the spine in pre-antibiotic times.

Authors: Hadju, T, Donoghue, HD, Bernert, Z, Fóthi, E, Kővári, I, Marcsik, A.
Title: A case of spinal tuberculosis from the Middle Ages in Transylvania (Romania).
Journal: Spine
Refs: DOI: 0.1097/BRS.0b013e31827300dc (accepted version now on-line); DOI: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e31827300dc
Link: Abstract

2011

Jo Marchant's feature in Nature cited Dr Donoghue's contribution to the debate about the survival and validity of ancient-DNA. Nature. 2011 Apr 28. Vol 472:404-406 (PDF)

Dr Timothy D McHugh

REMox TB Laboratory Manual (PDF)

Mr Kartyk Moganeradj (Centre for Clinical Microbiology)

Mr Moganeradj who works is the Department of Bioanalysis & Horizon Technologies at HPA Colindale is a part-time PhD student in the Centre for Clinical Microbiology. [Link to summary of research].
Authors:Moganeradj K, Abubakar I, McHugh TD, Sonnenberg P, Arnold C. Title: Insertion site mapping for repeated elements in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Journal: Journal of Microbiological Methods 92 (2013) 192–196 Link to full article.

Professor Graham Rook

..Rook et al (2013) Microbial "Old Friends", immunoregulation and psychiatric disorders. In "The gut mictobiome and the nervous system, Volume 26 (Heidt et al, eds), Old Herborn University, Herborn 61.
Link: http://www.old-herborn-university.de/literature/book/OHUni_book_26_article_6.pdf

..Professor Rook’s collaborative paper in Tuberculosis involved colleagues from Universidad Veracruzana, Mexico, and the National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition Salvador Zubiran, Mexico

Armando Mendez, Rogelio Hernandez-Pando, Salvador Contreras, Diana Aguilar, Graham A.W. Rook
"CCL2, CCL18 and sIL-4R in renal, meningeal and pulmonary TB; a 2 year study of patients and contacts."
Tuberculosis xxx (2011) 1-6 (Article in Press, PDF)

..Rook GA, Dalgleish A.
"Infection, immunoregulation, and cancer."
Immunol Rev. 2011 Mar;240(1):141-59. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-065X.2010.00987.x. [Link]

..Rook GA, Lowry CA, Raison CL.
"Lymphocytes in neuroprotection, cognition and emotion: Is intolerance really the answer?" Brain Behav Immun. 2010 Dec 16. [Epub ahead of print] 

Professor A Zumla: Publications of Research Group

2013

1. Authors: Al-Hajoj S, Varghese B, Shoukri MM, Al-Omari R, Al-Herbwai M, Alrabiah F, Alrajhi AA, Abuljadayel N, Al-Thawadi S, Zumla A, Zignol M, Raviglione MC, Memish Z.
Title: Epidemiology of antituberculosis drug resistance in saudi arabia: findings of the first national survey.
Journal/Ref: Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2013 May;57(5):2161-6. doi: 10.1128/AAC.02403-12. Epub 2013 Mar 4.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23459478

2. Authors: Bates M, Mudenda V, Mwaba P, Zumla A.
Title: Deaths due to respiratory tract infections in Africa: a review of autopsy studies.
Journal/Ref: Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2013 May;19(3):229-37. doi: 10.1097/MCP.0b013e32835f4fe4.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23429099

3. Authors: Al-Tawfiq JA, Zumla A, Memish ZA.
Title: Respiratory tract infections during the annual Hajj: potential risks and mitigation strategies.
Journal/Ref: Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2013 May;19(3):192-7. doi: 10.1097/MCP.0b013e32835f1ae8.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23429098

4. Author: Zumla A.
Title: Current trends and newer concepts on diagnosis, management and prevention of respiratory tract infections.
Journal/Ref: Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2013 May;19(3):189-91. doi: 10.1097/MCP.0b013e32835f8265.
Weblink: No abstract available.

5. Authors: Reddington K, Tuite N, Barry T, O'Grady J, Zumla A.
Title: Advances in multiparametric molecular diagnostics technologies for respiratory tract infections.
Journal/Ref: Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2013 May;19(3):298-304. doi: 10.1097/MCP.0b013e32835f1b32.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23425918

6. Authors: Rakotosamimanana N, Doherty TM, Andriamihantasoa LH, Richard V, Gicquel B, Soares JL, ZumlaA, Razanamparany VR.
Title: Expression of TNF-Alpha-Dependent Apoptosis-Related Genes in the Peripheral Blood of Malagasy Subjects with Tuberculosis.
Journal/Ref: PLoS One. 2013 Apr 12;8(4):e61154. Print 2013.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23593415

7. Authors: Ivanyi J, Zumla A.
Title: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for adjunctive tuberculosis treatment.
Journal/Ref: Infect Dis. 2013 Apr 5. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: No abstract available.

8. Authors: Brodin P, Valentini D, Uhlin M, Mattsson J, Zumla A, Maeurer MJ.
Title: Systems level immune response analysis and personalized medicine.
Journal/Ref: Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2013 Apr;9(4):307-17. doi: 10.1586/eci.13.9.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23557267

9. Authors: Kapata N, Chanda-Kapata P, O'Grady J, Bates M, Mwaba P, Janssen S, Marais B, Cobelens F, Grobusch M, Zumla A.
Title: Trends in childhood tuberculosis in zambia: a situation analysis.
Journal/Ref: J Trop Pediatr. 2013 Apr;59(2):134-9. doi: 10.1093/tropej/fms065. Epub 2012 Dec 12.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23243079

10. Authors: Wallis RS, Kim P, Cole S, Hanna D, Andrade BB, Maeurer M, Schito M, Zumla A.
Title:Tuberculosis biomarkers discovery: developments, needs, and challenges.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Apr;13(4):362-72. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70034-3. Epub 2013 Mar 24.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531389

11. Authors: Lawn SD, Mwaba P, Bates M, Piatek A, Alexander H, Marais BJ, Cuevas LE, McHugh TD, Zijenah L, Kapata N, Abubakar I, McNerney R, Hoelscher M, Memish ZA, Migliori GB, Kim P, Maeurer M, Schito M, Zumla A.
Title: Advances in tuberculosis diagnostics: the Xpert MTB/RIF assay and future prospects for a point-of-care test.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Apr;13(4):349-61. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70008-2. Epub 2013 Mar 24.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531388

12. Authors: Marais BJ, Graham SM, Maeurer M, Zumla A.
Title: Progress and challenges in childhood tuberculosis.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Apr;13(4):287-9. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70031-8. Epub 2013 Mar 24.
Weblink: No abstract available.

13. Authors: Zumla A, Kim P, Maeurer M, Schito M.
Title: Zero deaths from tuberculosis: progress, reality, and hope.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Apr;13(4):285-7. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70039-2. Epub 2013 Mar 24.
Weblink: No abstract available.

14. Authors: Wells WA, Boehme CC, Cobelens FG, Daniels C, Dowdy D, Gardiner E, Gheuens J, Kim P, Kimerling ME, Kreiswirth B, Lienhardt C, Mdluli K, Pai M, Perkins MD, Peter T, Zignol M, Zumla A, Schito M.
Title: Alignment of new tuberculosis drug regimens and drug susceptibility testing: a framework for action.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 22. doi:pii: S1473-3099(13)70025-2. 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70025-2. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531393

15. Authors: Wells WA, Boehme CC, Cobelens FG, Daniels C, Dowdy D, Gardiner E, Gheuens J, Kim P, Kimerling ME, Kreiswirth B, Lienhardt C, Mdluli K, Pai M, Perkins MD, Peter T, Zignol M, Zumla A, Schito M.
Title: Alignment of new tuberculosis drug regimens and drug susceptibility testing: a framework for action.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 22. doi:pii: S1473-3099(13)70025-2. 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70025-2. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531393

16. Authors: Marais BJ, Lönnroth K, Lawn SD, Migliori GB, Mwaba P, Glaziou P, Bates M, Colagiuri R, Zijenah L, Swaminathan S, Memish ZA, Pletschette M, Hoelscher M, Abubakar I, Hasan R, Zafar A, Pantaleo G, Craig G, Kim P, Maeurer M, Schito M, Zumla A.
Title: Tuberculosis comorbidity with communicable and non-communicable diseases: integrating health services and control efforts.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 22. doi:pii: S1473-3099(13)70015-X. 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70015-X. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531392

17. Authors: Abubakar I, Zignol M, Falzon D, Raviglione M, Ditiu L, Masham S, Adetifa I, Ford N, Cox H, Lawn SD, Marais BJ, McHugh TD, Mwaba P, Bates M, Lipman M, Zijenah L, Logan S, McNerney R, Zumla A, Sarda K, Nahid P, Hoelscher M, Pletschette M, Memish ZA, Kim P, Hafner R, Cole S, Migliori GB, Maeurer M, Schito M, Zumla A.
Title: Drug-resistant tuberculosis: time for visionary political leadership.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 22. doi:pii: S1473-3099(13)70030-6. 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70030-6. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531391

18. Authors: McCloskey B, Zumla A, Stephens G, Heymann DL, Memish ZA.
Title: Applying lessons from SARS to a newly identified coronavirus.
Journal/Ref: Lancet Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 23. doi:pii: S1473-3099(13)70082-3. 10.1016/S1473-3099(13)70082-3. [Epub ahead of print]
Weblink: No abstract available.

19. Authors: Alvarez-Corrales N, Ahmed RK, Rodriguez CA, Balaji KN, Rivera R, Sompallae R, Vudattu NK, Hoffner SE, Zumla A, Pineda-Garcia L, Maeurer M.
Title: Differential cellular recognition pattern to M. tuberculosis targets defined by IFN-γ and IL-17 production in blood from TB + patients from Honduras as compared to health care workers: TB and immune responses in patients from Honduras.
Journal/Ref: BMC Infect Dis. 2013 Mar 26;13:125. doi: 10.1186/1471-2334-13-125.
Weblink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23497342

20. Professor Zumla, from the Centre for Clinical Microbiology, joined three otherinternationally renowned TB experts: Professor Mario Raviglione, Director of the STOP TB Partnership, Geneva, Professor C Fordham von Reyn from Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Centre, New Hampshire, USA, and Dr Richard Hafner, of the National Institutes of health, Bethesda, USA  to review the current state of the art on tuberculosis (TB) in the New England published on 21 February 2013.

Authors: Zumla, A, Raviglione, M, Hafner, R, von Reyn cF.
Title: Current concepts: Tuberculosis
Journal/Ref: N Engl J Med 2013;368:745-55. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMra1200894 Link to full article: PDF download

2012

1. Authors: O'Grady J, Bates M, Chilukutu L, Mzyece J, Cheelo B, Chilufya M, Mukonda L, Mumba M, Tembo J, Chomba M, Kapata N, Maeurer M, Rachow A, Clowes P, Hoelscher M, Mwaba P, Zumla A.
Title: Evaluation of the Xpert(R) MTB/RIF assay at a tertiary referral hospital in a high TB/HIV endemic setting.
Journal/Ref: Clinical Infectious Diseases 2012 Jul 17. [Epub ahead of print]

2. Authors: Al Rabeeah A, Memish ZA, Zumla A, Shafi S, McCloskey B, Moolla A, Barbeschi M, Heymann D, Horton R.
Title: Mass gatherings medicine and global health security.
Journal/Ref: Lancet. 2012 Jul 7;380(9836):3-4.

3. Authors: Reddington K, Zumla A, Bates M, van Soolingen D, Niemann S, Barry T, O'Grady J.
Title: SeekTB, a Two-Stage Multiplex Real-Time-PCR-Based Method for Differentiation of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex.
Journal/Ref: J Clin Microbiol. 2012 Jul;50(7):2203-6. Epub 2012

4. Authors: Lawn SD, Zumla AI.
Title: Diagnosis of extrapulmonary tuberculosis using the Xpert(®) MTB/RIF assay.
Journal/Ref: Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther. 2012 ;10(6):631-5.

5. Authors: Raviglione M, Marais B, Floyd K, Lönnroth K, Getahun H, Migliori GB, Harries AD, Nunn P, Lienhardt C, Graham S, Chakaya J, Weyer K, Cole S, Kaufmann SH, Zumla A.
Title: Scaling up interventions to achieve global tuberculosis control: progress and new developments.
Journal/Ref: Lancet. 2012 379(9829):1902-13.

6. Authors: Ferrara G, Zumla A, Maeurer M.
Title: Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIg) for Refractory and Difficult-to-treat Infections.
Journal/Ref: Am J Med. 2012 [Epub ahead of print]

7. Authors: Zumla A, Ustianowski A.
Title: Tropical diseases: Definition, geographic distribution, transmission, and classification.
Journal/Ref: Infect Dis Clin North Am. 2012 Jun;26(2):195-205.

8. Authors: Haroon A, Zumla A, Bomanji J.
Title: Role of fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography in focal and generalized infectious and inflammatory disorders.
Journal/Ref: Clin Infect Dis. 2012 54(9):1333-41.

9. Authors: Geldmacher C, Zumla A, Hoelscher M.
Title: Interaction between HIV and Mycobacterium tuberculosis: HIV-1-induced CD4 T-cell depletion and the development of active tuberculosis. Journal/Ref: Curr Opin HIV AIDS. 2012 7(3):268-75.

2011

1.    Abebe M, Kim L, Rook G, Aseffa A, Wassie L, Zewdie M, Zumla A, Engers H, Andersen P, Doherty TM.
Modulation of cell death by M. tuberculosis as a strategy for pathogen survival.
Clin Dev Immunol: 2011: 678570.

2.    Bomanji J, Almuhaideb A, Zumla A.
Combined PET and X-ray computed tomography imaging in pulmonary infections and inflammation.
Current opinion in pulmonary medicine 2011: 17(3): 197-205.

3.    Fisk M, Peck LF, Miyagi K, Steward MJ, Lee SF, Macrae MB, Morris-Jones S, Zumla AI, Marks DJ.
Mycotic aneurysms: a case report, clinical review and novel imaging strategy.
QJM 2011.

4.    Lawn SD, Zumla AI.
Tuberculosis.
Lancet 2011.

5.    Mwaba P, McNerney R, Grobusch MP, O'Grady J, Bates M, Kapata N, Maeurer M, Zumla A.
Achieving STOP TB Partnership goals: perspectives on development of new diagnostics, drugs and vaccines for tuberculosis.
Trop Med Int Health 2011.

6.    Nunn AJ, Mwaba PB, Chintu C, Crook AM, Darbyshire JH, Ahmed Y, Zumla AI.
Randomised, placebo-controlled trial to evaluate co-trimoxazole to reduce mortality and morbidity in HIV-infected post-natal women in Zambia (TOPAZ).
Trop Med Int Health 2011: 16(4): 518-526.

7.    O'Grady J, Hoelscher M, Atun R, Bates M, Mwaba P, Kapata N, Ferrara G, Maeurer M, Zumla A.
Tuberculosis in prisons in sub-Saharan Africa--the need for improved health services, surveillance and control.
Tuberculosis (Edinburgh, Scotland) 2011: 91(2): 173-178.

8.    O'Grady J, Maeurer M, Mwaba P, Kapata N, Bates M, Hoelscher M, Zumla A.
New and improved diagnostics for detection of drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis.
Current opinion in pulmonary medicine 2011: 17(3): 134-141.

9.    O'Grady J, Mwaba P, Bates M, Kapata N, Zumla A.
Tuberculosis in prisons in sub-Saharan Africa - a potential time bomb.
Samj S Afr Med J 2011: 101(2): 107-108.

10.  Walzl G, Ronacher K, Hanekom W, Scriba TJ, Zumla A.
Immunological biomarkers of tuberculosis.
Nature reviews 2011: 11(5): 343-354.

11.  Wrightson JM, Rahman NM, Novak T, Huggett JF, Maskell NA, Zumla A, Miller RF, Davies RJ.
Pneumocystis jirovecii in pleural infection: a nucleic acid amplification study.
Thorax 2011: 66(5): 450-451.

12.  Zumla A.
Pulmonary infections: 'le terrain est tout, le microbe n'est rien'.
Current opinion in pulmonary medicine 2011: 17(3): 131-133.

13.  Zumla A.
The white plague returns to London--with a vengeance.
Lancet 2011: 377(9759): 10-11.

14.  Zumla A, Atun R, Maeurer M, Mwaba P, Ma Z, O'Grady J, Bates M, Dheda K, Hoelscher M, Grange J.
Viewpoint: Scientific dogmas, paradoxes and mysteries of latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.
Trop Med Int Health 2011: 16(1): 79-83.

15.  Zumla A, Yew WW.
New tools for achieving tuberculosis control: progress and reflexion.
Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2011: 15(3): 285-286.

16. Rachow1 A, Zumla A, Heinrich N,Rojas-Ponce G, Mtafya B,Reither K, Ntinginya EN, O’Grady J, Huggett J, Dheda K, Boehme C, Perkins M, Saathoff E, Hoelscher1 M
Rapid and Accurate Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Sputum Samples by Cepheid Xpert MTB/RIF Assay—A Clinical Validation Study
PLoS ONE, Vol6, Issue 6, e20458 (Full text, PDF)

2013

MARCH

Title: UCL WORLD TB DAY MEETING
"Targeting zero deaths from TB: progress, reality and hope"
Date: Monday, 25 March, 2013 - all day from 9am
Start time: 9am
Venue: Atrium, Royal Free Hospital
Register at: http://uclworldtbday.eventbrite.com
Download programme

JANUARY
Title: Acid Fast Club
Date: Friday, 11 January
Start time: 12.30
Venue: Atrium, Royal Free Hospital
Organiser: Prof Tim McHugh

Title: Healthcare Associated Infection meeting
Organisers: Prof Peter Wilson, UCLH; Dr Damien Mack, NHS
Date: Friday, 18 January 2013
Time: 3.30pm to 5.00pm
Venue: Tutorial Room 11 (ground floor), Medical School, Royal Free Hospital
Agenda (WORD)

2012

Professor Peter Wilson and Professor Tim McHugh: Inaugural Lectures and Reception.  

Date: Thursday, 13 December, 2012
Time: 6pm
Venue: Cruciform LT1, Cruciform Building, Gower Street
Reception: North Cloisters, Wilkins Building.
RSVPs to Isabel Lubeiro (email) please.

Professor Alimuddin Zumla - Karolinska Institute's Annual Clinical Science Prize

Professor Zumla delivered his presentation ‘Questioning dogma in Medicine and Science – a lifetime’s perspective on infectious diseases’ on November 8 at Birkeaulan, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden. 
Karolinska Institutet (link)

UCL Grand Challenge of Global Health: 1-day conference on TB

Tuberculosis: Local and Global

Friday, 23 March, 8.30-6.30 at the Royal Free.
The UCL Institute for Global Health is marking World TB Day with a meeting that addresses tuberculosis as a challenge to London and UK health services and sets it in a global context, with the launch of Tuberculosis and TB/HIV; Controversies and unanswered questions, a Journal of Infectious Diseases special supplement edited by Professor Ali Zumla (UCL Centre for Clinical Microbiology) and Marco Schito (National Institutes of Health, USA).

The meeting will be of interest to scientists, clinicians and students. The conference is free to attend but registration is required. 

More details. Register for this event.

Centre for Clinical Microbiology Meeting

Wednesday, 11 January, 2012 1.30pm (half-day mtg)

Chair: Dr Tim McHugh, Director
Venue: Peter Samuel Hall, Flr 1, Royal Free
Programme of presentations (downloads)

..

2011

Healthcare Associated Infections Research Group: 15 December 2011, 3.30pm-5.30pm

Venue: Tutorial Room 5, Lower Ground Floor, Royal Free Hospital

Healthcare Associated Infection meeting is hosted by Peter Wilson (UCLH) and will include presentations from his team. 

Agenda (WORD doc)

..

Tackling Tuberculosis on a Global Scale

Thursday 24th March 2011
1.30 - 6pm, Cruciform Lecture Theatre 1 and South Cloisters, UCL.

World TB day, 24th March, commemorates the date in 1882 when Dr Robert Koch announced the dicovery of mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis. Join us to explore UCL research on TB through a series of short presentations and posters.Everyone Welcome!

Registration Link: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/global-health/events

..

UCLP TB Afternoon (3 November, 2010)

A report and presentations from UCLP's Infection Theme's first TB afternoon can be seen here.

Staff are all based at the Centre on UCL's Royal Free campus unless otherwise identified. (Reviewed: 27 February 2013)

RiD-RTI EU-funded Research Team Meeting (April 2013)

Front row (right to left): Dr Ljuban Grgic (UCL, UK - Project Administrator), Prof Laura Huopaniemi (Mobidiag, Finland - Co-investigator), Prof Alimuddin Zumla (UCL, UK - Principal Investigator), Prof Vanya Gant (UCLH,UK - Co-investigator), Dr Claude Weisbuch (Genewave, France, Technical Coordinator)

Standing (right to left): Mr Marko Kuisma (Mobidiag, Finland - Business Development Manager), Dr Juha Kirveskari (Mobidiag, Finland), Ms Ilaria Marsili (UCL, UK – ERDO Manager ) Dr Nina L. Tuite (NUIG, Ireland - Senior Postdoctoral Researcher), Dr Kate Reddington (NUIG, Ireland - Postdoctoral Researcher),  Dr Mary Lenahan (UCL, UK – Postdoctoral Research Associate), Dr Francis Domain (Genewave, France – Product Manger, Biology), Dr Yann Marcy (Genewave, France – Head of R&D), Dr Philippe Loiseau (Genewave, France – Project Officer), Ms Kirsi Moilanen (Mobidiag, Finland - Research Assistant).

Professor Zumla chaired a meeting in April with representatives from 5 European country partners to discuss progress on their multi-million euros EU-funded collaborative R&D programme grant on development of new diagnostic platforms for rapid point of care screening for a range of bacterial, viral and fungal pathogens from a single sputum sample within an hour of obtaining the specimen. 

The final platform will have inbuilt tech for it to run from solar power so, if successful, it can be useful in developing countries at points of care.   

Research Project leaflet: Download PDF

EU grant 6 million euros (£4.7million) award provides unique opportunity for multidisciplinary solutions

Centre members Professor Alimuddin Zumla (Professor of Infectious Diseases and International Health), Dr Justin O’Grady (senior postdoctoral scientist) and Dr Vanya GANT (consultant microbiologist, University College London Hospitals NHS Trust) have successfully signed a contract with the EU, Brussels for  six million euros (£4.7 million pounds)  they competitively obtained from European Union programme entitled ‘Health Innovation’.
    At the first partners meeting held at UCL earlier this month, Professor Zumla, Dr Justin O’Grady and Dr Vanya Gant said they were “absolutely delighted to receive this award since it consolidates our leadership of global infectious diseases research and development and the special excellent collaborative partnerships which UCLH and UCL have with our overseas partners.   They said they will use these monies to enhance their existing fruitful collaborative research activities on bacterial pneumonia, influenza and tuberculosis and to develop a diagnostic test that will rapidly and  detect the exact cause of serious lung infections, which would allow the most appropriate specific antibiotics to be prescribed quickly thus improving treatment outcomes.
    “It provides an ideal opportunity for us to develop a unique multidisciplinary network of clinicians, basic scientists, molecular biologist, microbiologists linked in with industry to work in unison to achieve a multiplier effect in improving the clinical treatment management outcomes of  respiratory infections, such as bacterial pneumonia, tuberculosis and fungal infections”
     “There is a great need for rapid, accurate molecular diagnostics tests capable of identifying a large panel of causative microorganism/s to enable appropriate microorganism-specific therapy to be rapidly initiated for improved management outcomes”
    “This exciting grant award will further enhance our collaborative activities between UCLH and UCL and with our partners in Finland, Ireland and France, in the fight against these killer respiratory diseases which kill millions of people each year.”
Date: 24 July 2012

Below: Professor Ali Zumla, Dr Justin O’Grady (standing – second and third from from right)and Dr Vanya Gant (sitting –third from right) with partners from France, Ireland and Finland

REMox TB achieves recruitment target (Jan 2012)

Dr Tim McHugh, Director of the Centre for Clinical Microbiology, is pleased to announce that the recruitment target of 1900 was achieved (final number 1904).   REMoxTB is a phase III regulatory clinical trial designed to test treatment shortening regimens for tuberculosis. The ultimate outcome of REMoxTB is a new regimen for treatment of TB and the study leaves a substantial legacy the network of trials sites prepared to test the next generation of compounds and regimens.

To read more from Dr McHugh about this project.
Details of the Trial on NIH Clinical Trials website.
TB Alliance press release (1 February, 2012)

PanACEA - introduction to the Project (2011)

PanACEA, The Pan African Consortium for the Evaluation of Antituberculosis Antibiotics, is an externally funded international collaborative project exploring new drugs that have the potential to shorten TB treatment.

One of the centre's biggest projects, PanACEA, The Pan African Consortium for the Evaluation of Antituberculosis Antibiotics, is an externally funded international collaborative project exploring new drugs that have the potential to shorten TB treatment.

World TB Day (24 March 2011)

Tackling Tuberculosis on a Global Scale

Thursday 24th March 2011
1.30 - 6pm, Cruciform Lecture Theatre 1 and South Cloisters, UCL.

World TB day, 24th March, commemorates the date in 1882 when Dr Robert Koch announced the dicovery of mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis. Join us to explore UCL research on TB through a series of short presentations and posters.Everyone Welcome!

Registration Link: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/global-health/events

Lancet Seminar: Tuberculosis (March 18, 2011)

As world TB day approaches on 24 March, The Lancet publishes a Seminar Online First that reports that, with increasing rates of drug-resistant TB, the progress being made for decades by world TB programmes is under threat. It also discusses the how other risk factors, such as smoking and diabetes, are increasingly important in fuelling the global burden of TB.

The Seminar is by Professor Alimuddin Zumla, University College London Medical School, UK, and Dr Stephen Lawn, University of Cape Town, South Africa. 
(Press Release, Abstract, PDF)

TB Afternoon (3 November 2010)

A report and presentations from UCLP's Infection Theme's first TB afternoon can be seen here.

EDCTP & UK-TBD: Our Research Commitments

Support for our work comes from substantial funding from the EU, EDCTP (read more here), MRC, Wellcome Trust , NIHR and the Gates Foundation amongst others.  Our MRC-funded project to develop collaboration between TB research groups in the UK has it's kick-off conference in January - read more about TBD-UK here.

The Health Show: TB Special

A film on the GeneXpert machine will be transmitted this Saturday 13 August 2011 on The Health Show as part of a TB special.  The film features Dr Tim McHugh and Dr Bertie Squire and also includes: a feature on the new TMC 207 drug, a feature about tracing TB patients who don't take their treatment in Lesotho and a studio interview with Prof Ajit Lalvani from Imperial College, London. 

The show and the films on the website cannot be seen in the UK but you can watch it live on www.rentadrone.org and you can watch it anytime on www.rockhopper.tv from the morning of Saturday 13 August 2011 (link to TB short films including GeneXpert).  It can also be downloaded from the Rockhopper site 28 days after transmission. The GeneXpert film will be on the BBC website from 11 August 2011 (Thursday afternoon).  

The transmission times are Saturdays at 10:10 and 20:10 GMT and on Sundays at 07:10 and 23:10 GMT. See link for more information about the show - http://bbc.in/ntogPP

(Reviewed: 8 January, 2013)

Current Students and their project titles (session 2012/13)

Student Name: Ms Michelle Cairns
Based at Health Protection Agency, Royal London Hospital
Title: Clostridium difficile: phylogenomics and disease severity.
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh, Professor Brendan Wren and Dr Nandini Shetty
Email; Wren Lab

...

Student Name: Ms Marie Anne Chattaway (based at Health Protection Agency, Colindale)
Title: A Novel Approach to Pathogen Recognition in association with Diarrheagenic Enteroaggregative E. coli
Supervisors: Professor John Wain, Dr Clare Jenkins, Professor Tim McHugh
...

Student Name: Ms Nicole Christian (based at UWI Mona Campus, Jamaica)
Title: A Prospective Study of Quinolone Resistance in a Tertiary Care Referral Centre in the West Indies.
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh, Dr Bambos Charalambous and Dr Gemma Vanstone
...

Student Name: Ms Joana Fonseca
Title: Evolution of drug resistance in tuberculosis.
Supervisor: Professor Tim McHugh, Dr Sharon Kendall (RVC), Dr Bambos Charalambous
...

Student Name: Mr Davinder Garcha
Title: Role of bacteria in COPD exacerbations.
Supervisor: Professor Tim McHugh, Professor Wisia Wedzicha
...

Student Name: Dr Eleanna Giannatou
Title: Diagnosis and management of invasive aspergillosis.
Supervisor: Professor Chris Kibbler, Professor Hans Stauss
...

Student Name: Ms Rebecca Gorton
Title: Molecular diagnosis of invasive fungal disease.
Supervisor: Professor Chris Kibbler, Professor Tim McHugh
...

Student Name: Ms Alice Marriott
Title: Resistance and persistence in Mycobacterium tuberculosis against frontline therapeutics.
Supervisor: Dr Joanna Bacon, Professor Tim McHugh
...

Student Name: Ms Jessica Mears
Title:Evaluation of the National TB strain typing service
Supervisors: Professor Ibrahim Abubakar (UCL & HPA), Dr Pam Sonnenberg (UCL) and Professor Tim McHugh (UCL)
...

Student Name: Mr Kartykayan Moganeradj
Working title: The Role of the Transposable Element IS6110 in the evolution of successful lineages of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Supervisors:  Dr Catherine Arnold (UCL & HPA), Professor Ibrahim Abubakar (UCL & HPA), Dr Pam Sonnenberg (UCL) and Professor Tim McHugh
Summary
...

Student Name: Dr Michael E Murphy
Title: Predicting the outcome of tuberculosis treatment
Supervisor: Professor Stephen H Gillespie (University of St Andrews), dr Marc Lipman (RF NHS)
Project synopsis, publications and presentations
...

Student: Dr Sara Murthy
Title: Tuberculosis: measuring outcomes in clinical trials
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh, Professor Stephen Gillespie (St Andrews)

...

Student Name: Dr Giovanni Satta
Title: Meeting the challenge of drug resistant tuberculosis
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh and Dr Marc Lipman
PhD Proposal (PDF)
...

Student Name: Ms Sarah Thurston
Title: Antibiotic resistance in COPD
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh, Professor Wisia Wedzicha
...

Recently completed Research degrees (sessions 2010/11/12)

Student Name: Dr Marcus Leung
Title: Multiple colonization of Streptococcus pneumoniae as means of cell-to-cell communication and adaptive microevolution.
Supervisor: Dr Bambos Charalambous
Project synopsis, publications and presentations
Presentation (Jan 2012):Competence stimulatory peptide gene comC as a promising target for differentiating Streptococcus pseudopneumoniae from Streptococcus pneumoniae and other streptococcal species (Download)

Student Name: Dr Ndekya Oriyo
Title: Longitudinal study on carriage, antibiotic resistance and prevalent serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae in a semi-isolated community in North-East Tanzania
Supervisor: Dr Bambos Charalambous
Second Supervisor: Professor Stephen H Gillespie (University of St Andrews)
...

Student Name: Dr Robert Shorten
Title:
Supervisor: Professor Tim McHugh
...

Student Name: Dr Amani M Alnimr
Title: Microbiological assessment of novel anti-tuberculosis compounds
Supervisors: Professor Tim McHugh, Professor Stephen H Gillespie (University of St Andrews)

Title: Drug resistant tuberculosis: fit for the challenge
Delivered: 13 December, 2012

Title: Healthcare-acquired infection: control by innovation.
Delivered on 13 December, 2012.

Professor Alimuddin Zumla

Professor Ali Zumla has been awarded the Zambian Order of Distinguished Service (First Division) by the President of Zambia during the Zambia presidential award investiture ceremony on 24 October, during Zambia's independence day celebrations, at the Presidential State House in Lusaka. The award was made to recognise Professor Zumla's considerable achievements in medicine and international development.

He has been further honoured as winner of the Karolinska Institute's Annual Clinical Science Prize and will be delivering the his presentation ‘Questioning dogma in Medicine and Science – a lifetime’s perspective on infectious diseases’ on November 8 at Birkeaulan, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden.  Karolinska Institutet.

INTERTB (International Consortium for Trials of
Chemotherapeutic Agents in Tuberculosis) at St George's, University of London:
link to meetings 2012 (PDFs and Videos) and meeting archive.