Du Toit Loots
North-West University, South Africa
Title: “TB or not TB†that is the question – Understanding and diagnosing TB using metabolomics
Biography
Biography: Du Toit Loots
Abstract
Despite the fervent genomic and proteomic based research efforts to date, since its discovery in 1882, TB is still a major global problem, and hence new approaches are necessary to better characterize and diagnose this disease. Using a variety of LC-MS, GC-MS and NMR metabolomics based methodologies, we have investigated tuberculosis from a variety of different perspectives, for the purpose of identifying new biomarkers which better explain the mechanisms related to drug resistance, virulence, growth and host-microbe interactions/adaptations. Furthermore, these biomarkers are also showing promise for the development of improved diagnostic approaches, not only for identifying TB complex, but also for detecting drug resistant strains, distinguishing various Mycobacterium species, and predicting treatment outcome.
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