The study authors said that many cases of drug resistance remained undetected due to inaccurate tests, resulting in more deaths from incorrect treatment.
The researchers also determined that the two most widely used IGRAs used for diagnosing the disease in developed countries are not accurate for active TB.
At JP Morgan, Qiagen CEO Peer Schatz discussed a new digital PCR system and handheld reader for TB testing; Qiagen's acquisition of N-of-One; and its new sample prep system.
The UK developers believe that their device has the potential for multiplex testing at the point of care using solid-state nanopore sensing with DNA probes.
The firm will use its solid-state nanopore technology to develop a point-of-care molecular diagnostic device to detect tuberculosis in low-resource areas.
The PCR assay is intended to help detect TB-causing bacteria and determine if it harbors mutations associated with isoniazid and rifampicin resistance.
