High quality TB research demands for knowledge and experience. And this was exactly what BPRC scientists shared during an international TB conference in the Unites States.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious lung disease caused by bacteria. It spreads via tiny water droplets during coughing. In the Western World TB is usually treated with long term antibiotics. But antibiotic resistant TB bacteria are emerging fast.
TB research
BPRC is already involved in TB research for decades. TB research is hampered by the fact that the disease symptoms manifest within the lung. Before we used chest X-rays to visualize the disease, but this technique is not sensitive enough to detect small inflammations in the lung. PET-CT is a visualization technique that is not only much more sensitive but also provides more information. The last few years BPRC invested in PET-CT with a scanner that was specifically designed for monkey research.
International conference Rockville
So far, our TB research group has made approximately 600 scans with this scanner and is therefore the world leader user-expert. During an international TB conference at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Rockville, USA, they shared their knowledge with other scientists in the field. This way other animal facilities gain from our experience and may use the results for their own benefit.
Sharing data prevents unnecessary repeats of animal experiments while pushing TBC research forward.