This diagnostic test helps to find how much disease is in the population to understand whether the strategies to eliminate Onchocerciasis are working or not. Unfortunately, it is not possible to completely get rid of it. There are drugs used to treat people infected by the parasite. The problem is that the drug kills parasites only in their larval state, but not the adult ones. The treatment is needed for long enough to kill the parasites. However, the larva or the adult will not necessarily harm people, they might just use people as hosts. This makes it very difficult to understand how many people might be infected since not all are exhibiting symptoms of the disease.
Mary Doherty, PhD says that it would be great to resolve the issue of neglected tropical diseases. While it is what their lab is currently focused on, they are sure they can find something else to be interested in once they have solved the current problem troubling the world.
In general, Williams’ lab loves developing new methods and testing out all kinds of new products and technologies, which could help improve how science and diagnostics are done today. It has been a pleasure working with them and we hope to continue doing that in the future.Product used: HOT FIREPol® Probe qPCR Mix Plus (ROX)
“Solis BioDyne’s HOT FIREPol® mix worked better than lyophilized alternatives that we tested. Instead of producing a master mix, lyophilizing it, and sending it, we got all from HOT FIREPol®, which made the work a lot easier,” said Mary Doherty, PhD.References:Doherty, M., Grant, J. R., Pilotte, N., Bennuru, S., Fischer, K., Fischer, P. U., Lustigman, S., Nutman, T. B., Pfarr, K., Hoerauf, A., Unnasch, T. R., Hassan, H. K., Wanji, S., Lammie, P. J., Ottesen, E., Mackenzie, C., & Williams, S. A. (2023). Optimized strategy for real-time qPCR detection of Onchocerca volvulus DNA in pooled Simulium sp. blackfly vectors. PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 17(12), e0011815. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011815
This summer we got to collaborate with a fun project organized by the MINT Campus in Germany. Not only does MINT campus inspire children and young people about these topics but it also introduces young people to sustainable, innovative developments in current research and technology.
Whether you are studying the genetic material of plants, brains or viruses, the experiment usually starts with extracting RNA from the sample material. It would be incredibly useful to get all the RNA extracted instead of it getting destroyed by the RNases before even starting the cDNA synthesis step. But how can we protect the RNA when RNases are all around us? Let’s find out!
There aren’t many people who can lead teams as well as our Head of Quality and Product Management Eva-Maria does. She is like that red string on a mystery board connecting all the departments. If you would like to get a little closer to solving the great leadership puzzle that Eva-Maria has mastered, have a look at the following story.
On the 4th and 5th of June representatives from South Korea visited Tartu. Their primary focus was on exploring opportunities in the fields of biotechnology and medicine, seeking potential collaborators in Estonia. We had the great pleasure of meeting the delegation and sharing our knowledge on both days of the visit.
