Evaluation of cytokine levels using QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus in patients with active tuberculosis

Today, interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) are essential tools for detecting infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis), including for diagnosing latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). IGRAs, including both QuantiFERON (QFT) and T-SPOT.TB, enable direct observation of the response of a patient's blood cells to specific antigens derived from M. tuberculosis.1,2 On the other hand, IGRAs were not useful for accurately discriminating between active tuberculosis (active TB) and LTBI.

Source: Journal of Infection - February 21, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Maho Suzukawa, Keita Takeda, Shunsuke Akashi, Isao Asari, Masahiro Kawashima, Nobuharu Ohshima, Eri Inoue, Ryota Sato, Masahiro Shimada, Junko Suzuki, Akira Yamane, Atsuhisa Tamura, Ken Ohta, Shigeto Toma, Katsuji Teruya, Hideaki Nagai Source Type: research