A team of researchers from Cardiff and Aberystwyth Universities have been awarded funding of nearly £1.2m by UKRI to develop a novel point of care mycobacterium tuberculosis detector for humans and animals capable of delivering a result within one hour.

Cardiff University says the technology will be completely transformative in the rapid diagnosis of TB and will be simple enough to be operated by any healthcare worker or farmer. It will improve on state of the art approaches in terms of specificity, sensitivity, and time to result, being significantly quicker than both PCR and microscopy testing.

The project brings together experts in veterinary medicine, microbiology, microwave and photonic engineering, to develop a novel, disruptive solution to a worldwide healthcare problem.

Professor Adrian Porch, from Cardiff University’s School of Engineering, is the principal investigator on the project. He said “Novel solutions to today’s major societal challenges are likely to arise from interdisciplinary research.

“With the aid of the UKRI funding, we have an opportunity to exploit the unique expertise of our team to help the worldwide fight against TB, to alleviate the huge suffering in both humans and animals via early and accurate diagnosis.”

TB is a major cause of suffering and death in humans and animals worldwide and is the second leading infectious killer of humans after Covid-19. There are currently around ten million recorded human TB infections per year, with a death rate of 1.8 million per year. A lack of advanced laboratory diagnostic tools, particularly in poorer nations, often leads to misdiagnoses and ineffective treatment, severely marring patient recovery.

There is also two way transmission between cattle and wild animals (for example, badgers in the UK). The high prevalence of the disease in parts of the UK, coupled with the test and slaughter strategy for disease control, has a major effect on both the livelihoods and wellbeing of farmers. The surveillance, diagnostic testing, badger culling and vaccination costs the UK Government alone a total of £100m per year.

Professor Les Baillie, Professor of Microbiology at Cardiff University’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, is co-lead on the project. He said “Tuberculosis is a particular problem for farmers in Wales who have seen bovine TB decimate herds across the country. Diagnosis of the early stages of infection is challenging due to the lack of rapid, accurate tests.

“To address this, we are working with colleagues from Aberystwyth University to advance the development of a real-time test capable to detecting the presence of the pathogen in clinical and environmental samples.”

Further investment in the project will allow it to be reduced in both size and cost to create a simple, low cost detector, which will have particular benefit for use in developing countries. The platform can be easily adapted to detect most other pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2 and MRSA, so it could become an important tool to help control the spread of future pandemics.

The project is being funded by the UKRI cross research council responsive mode (CRCRM) pilot scheme, which is supporting new and creative interdisciplinary ideas emerging from the UK’s research community. The project has been awarded £1,199,669 and is one of thirty six projects being funded by the £32.4m UKRI CRCRM scheme.

Welcoming the investment, Professor Roger Whitaker, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Enterprise at Cardiff University, said “Ending the human TB epidemic by 2050 is a UN sustainable development goal, and the development of more effective rapid diagnostic tests is a key recommendation from the World Health Organisation.

“This project is truly interdisciplinary and embodies Cardiff’s aim of being an anchor institution for Wales and the wider world, as well as a pioneer for grand-challenge research. By working with colleagues in Aberystwyth University we are helping co-create a better global future free from the devastating ravages of TB.”