TB Sniffing Rat Pack
Just when you thought “Ratatouille” would be the highlight for these long-tailed rodents, the organization APOPO has trained African rats to diagnose pulmonary tuberculosis (TB). Using scent detection, these HeroRAT’s can reliably (50 percent higher reliability than traditional microscopy) process 40 sputum samples in seven minutes, a task that takes trained lab technicians an entire day.
This innovative means of ‘ratting out’ pulmonary tuberculosis presents a unique way to enhance TB case detection in resource limited settings.
To learn more, read the original article here, and check out ONE’s tuberculosis brief here.
-Rena Pacheco-Theard
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August 18, 2009 at 10:57 am
LOL ! Whatever works!