For qPCR-based TB Testing in Africa, Scientists Need Tough Equipment and Reliable Reagents

With more than 1,674,000 related deaths around the world, tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of death. Some of the highest incidence can be found in Tanzania and the Kingdom of Eswatini, where TB is a significant driver of mortality among people with HIV or certain parasites.

Andrew DiNardo, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the sections of infectious disease and global and immigrant health at Baylor College of Medicine, has spent years exploring the impact of HIV and parasites on TB epigenetic and immunology status. He also works with translational research laboratories across Africa that are part of the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children’s Hospital.

Together with his BCM colleagues, Dr. DiNardo is implementing a novel translational research method that isolates and analyzes DNA from stool samples to rapidly identify parasitic worms and TB infections by qPCR. This noninvasive technique improves TB detection, especially among children and people living with HIV who have trouble expectorating sputum, making it easier to screen samples and detect TB before symptoms appear, when treatment options are more viable.

“We now screen approximately 600 samples a year as part of this research study,” Dr. DiNardo says. “The stool qPCR assays are able to detect 95% of sputum culture-positive cases versus 40% to 60% reported in the literature by other stool techniques.” For this work, he depends on Quantabio’s Q Cycler and PerfeCTa qPCR ToughMix to deliver high-quality data despite extreme temperature and travel conditions.

qPCR testing in Africa calls for a robust solution that can travel well and withstand significant temperature ranges; many reagents degrade in this challenging environment. When Dr. DiNardo first tried out Quantabio’s products, he was impressed with the results. “I couldn’t believe how well the products traveled and performed in the field,” he says. “I loved how we didn’t have to sacrifice performance quality for speed or portability. … Considering its size, intuitive software, and near perfectly reproducible Ct curves, we’ve decided to make the Q our workhorse qPCR machine.”

The PerfeCTa qPCR ToughMix also delivered beyond expectations. “We found it to be very stable and not sensitive to the temperature changes,” Dr. DiNardo says. “Repeated freezing and thawing did not have any effect on the overall PCR performance and we have since generated high-quality, reproducible data in Mozambique, Tanzania, and Eswatini.”

To learn more about how Dr. DiNardo is working to expand access to this type of testing — and how the Quantabio products withstood not just 38 hours of travel but a hurricane too — please read our full customer profile.