"New Test Gives One-Hour TB Diagnosis: Scientists" Agence France Presse (09.15.10)

Scientists with the Health Protection Agency have developed a new test that can diagnose TB within one hour, the agency says. Data on the "ultra-rapid" test are being presented today at the University of Warwick at HPA's annual conference, Health Protection 2010.
Standard testing can take up to eight weeks to grow and identify TB bacteria. Other rapid molecular tests focus on an element in TB that, while normally occurring, is present in very low amounts or even lacking in some circulating strains, HPA said.
The experimental test is more sensitive, using real-time polymerase chain reaction to amplify copies of a piece of tuberculosis DNA and generate millions of that particular sequence. The test focuses on that single tuberculosis DNA molecule. To further evaluate the product, trials comparing it with standard tests are planned for UK labs during the next year.
"We're excited to have developed this new test because it means we can potentially diagnose someone at a TB clinic within an hour and start them immediately on the treatment they need," said Cath Arnold, study leader and head of HPA's genomic services unit. "This new test could really have an impact where it is needed most."
"Up to 75 percent of people with TB are transient, and it is difficult if they are not treated straightaway because they can move on and infect people," said Emma Gilgunn-Jones, an HPA spokesperson. It will likely be at least two years before the test is available on the market, she noted.