Exploring a combined bio-marker for tuberculosis treatment response

Project Summary 

Treatment of tuberculosis is long (≥6 months) and requires a combination of drugs. Scientists have been trying to develop more effective drug combinations although this is not straightforward.

There is no test that can predict if the patient will be cured early in their treatment course. This research project will focus on generating information that can be used to develop such a test. I will study (1) the response of the patients’ own defense system, (2) the amount of drug in the patients’ blood and (3) the amount of tuberculosis in the patients’ sputum.

Links to other research

Other research from the UCL Centre for Pragmatic Global Health Trials

Other research from IGH on Pharmacology, Modelling, Statistics and Translational Research

Other research from IGH in the UK

Project information

Dates: 01/10/2020 - 21/10/2025

Status: Current

UCL lead/Principal Investigator: Frank Kloprogge, UCL Institute for Global Health

IGH lead: Frank Kloprogge

Partner: University of Cape Town and Boston University, School of Medicine

Location: South Africa and United States

Funding: Wellcome Trust

Contact: f.kloprogge@ucl.ac.uk

Publications

Kloprogge F, Abubakar I, Esmail H, Hack V, Kunst H, McHugh TD, Noursadeghi M, Surey J, Tiberi S, Lipman M. Exploring a combined biomarker for tuberculosis treatment response: protocol for a prospective observational cohort study. BMJ Open. 2021 Jul 8;11(7):e052885. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-052885. PMID: 34244287; PMCID: PMC8268918.

Research team

Ibrahim Abubakar

Paolo Denti

Hanif Esmail

Karen Jacobson

Marc Lipman

Timothy McHugh

Helen McIlleron

Mahdad Noursadeghi

Caroline Ramsey

Julian Surey

Sean Wasserman