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SCIENTISTS IN BRITAIN say they have developed a super-sensitive test using nano-particles to spot markers for cancer or the AIDS virus in human blood serum using the naked eye.
As it does not need sophisticated equipment, the test-tube technique should be cheap and simple, making it a a boon for disease detection in poor countries, the team wrote in Nature Nanotechnology on Sunday.
Researchers from Imperial College London used the technology to scan for molecules of p24, a marker for HIV infection, and Prostate Specific Antigen or PSA, an early indicator of prostate cancer.
Their method is used to analyse serum, a light-yellow fluid that is extracted from blood by a centifuge and is commonly used in health tests.
Distinctive blue hue
“If the result is positive for p24 or PSA, there is a reaction that generates irregular clumps of nanoparticles, which give off a distinctive blue hue in a solution inside the container,” said a statement.
The reaction, in response to the presence of antibodies, occurred even at ultra-low concentrations of p24 or PSA.
“If the results are negative, the nanoparticles separate into ball-like shapes, creating a reddish hue. Both reactions can be easily seen by the naked eye.”
Nanoparticles are microscopic clusters of atoms sized between one and 100 nanometres (a billionth of a metre), that are seen as a promising field of research for their potential in delivering medicines, for example.
10 times more sensitive
The team said their visual sensor technology was 10 times more sensitive than existing standard methods for measuring p24 and PSA biomarkers — molecules that can indicate the presence of disease.
It was able to detect minute levels of p24 in patients with low viral loads that went undetected using some existing tests.
The new method was also 10 times cheaper.
Study co-author Roberto de la Rica said the test would allow people to be diagnosed at an earlier state of disease, and thus treated sooner.
“We also believe that this test could be significantly cheaper to administer, which could pave the way for more widespread use of HIV testing in poorer parts of the world.”
But study co-author Molly Stevens told AFP the method had yet to be tested in a large patient trial to confirm its usefulness.
As yet, the technique cannot pinpoint how big the concentration of HIV or cancer markers is.
“It is an ‘on-off’ test,” Stevens cautioned. “It does not say specifically how many biomarkers are in blood, but only if they are present.”
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the biggest obstacle is religion
The biggest problem is lack of education. I have lived in the AIDS capital of the world and religion was not the barrier there
religion is a barrier to education
Religion has nothing to do with this.
It’s lack of education and knowledge. Full stop.
I agree education is key, education in safe sex and removal of tribal cultures surrounding ‘cures’ for HIV, and especially key is the education of women – as they tend to be more likely to pass onto children, where culture and tradition have not yet become indoctrinated.
However, Africa has a boom in Catholicism: http://www.africamasterweb.com/AdSense/AfricaAndCatholicism.html
And the official Vatican stance and that of catholic relief and aid workers is that condoms are not to be condoned or distributed: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/jan-june11/vatican_05-30.html
This is despite condoms and testing being key to the decrease in HIV infections in the Western World.
Have you checked the numbers between countries with many Catholics and those with the highest AIDS rates? They might not match as closely as you believe.
Most of Southern Africa, which is where you will find those countries with the highest rates of AIDS are actually predominantly protestant:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV/AIDS_in_Africa#Southern_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_Church_by_country#Africa
Just to point out that I am actually an agnostic and so not a Church supporter but there’s no point blaming them for something that is not entirely their fault
Without getting into lies, damn lies, and statistics I would wonder how much of those protestants in Southern Africa are from an ex-pat background and therefore less likely to be an victim of HIV?
Like I say, I’m not discounting what you’re saying – I’d just like to see relief organisations (of which many are Catholic) move towards teaching and promoting safer sex, rather than unrealistic abstinence.
Most of the Africans in Southern Africa are protestant.
Most African catholics were converted by Catholic Missions who generally stayed around mid-Africa whereas the protestants (English, Dutch, etc.) settled and converted in Southern Africa.
I’ve grown up there. I know the statistics
I would like to say that I too, would like to see a realistic approach to teaching safe sex and use of condoms as opposed to using the ridiculous notions that Africans will follow the idea of abstinence
Siomha,
I remember Bishop Desmond Tutu addressing a WHO conference and declaring that the attitude of Catholic missionary and aid groups to condom use had exasperated the spread of the disease in Africa.
I’ve been living with HIV for seven years. If it wasn’t for the antiretroviral drugs I’d be dead. Huge advances in the treatment and decreases in the stigma attached to the virus have been achieved, but there’s still a long way to go. The virus is seen as a manageable disease and therefore not the threat is once was. This is folly. I wish the only impact on my life was the taking of a tablet each evening. Little is known about the long-term effects of these drugs; nor about the very real risk of dementia, cancers, pneumonia, skin conditions and the host of opportunistic infections being infected leaves you prone to. Education is everything.
Why does Concern’s Senior HIV Adviser never mention the use of CONDOMS to fight Aids in developing countries? NOT MENTIONED ONCE.
I find that surprising as well. Condoms are the main way to prevent the spread of AIDS and nearly all anti-AIDS campaigns use those as their main platforms.
Maybe it is more than just the use of condoms that is important?
Si it is more but they are the best way to prevent AIDS spreading. Every campaign should highlight that
Could have sworn I heard the news on the radio say infection in young people here had risen sharply
The article doesn’t break down the infection rates by demographics so you could be right. The overall trend seems to be going the right way.
You did hear that. Young men 24 to 39 at highest risk, I think. Ignorance is on the rise because the heyday of AIDS campaigning was 20 years ago when they were little kids.
Hmmm.. There were people in Swaziland eating faecal matter not so long ago because they couldn’t take their AIDS meds on an empty stomach (talk about skewed priorities – drugs are more important than FOOD now?)
This article also points out that in the place where new infections are rampant nutrition and sanitation leave a lot to be desired..
Wonder how many people in the 3rd world get “diagnosed” with AIDS when malnutrition and poor sanitation is the true reason their immune systems don’t work? Bearing in mind that the “tests” (ELISA and western blot) specifically state that they are unsuitable for determining the presence of HIV, a virus that has not been isolated. Rather these tests measure viral load and antibody response (and can test positive if you have the flu, are pregnant, or have just had a vaccine – hence the two tests taken several weeks apart).. There are people starving, they are obviously not adequately nourished, and instead of making sure that they can eat – drugs take priority (and companies like concern just keep pushing that appalling quality soy based muck and drugs approach rather than building self sustainability and organic farming)
I do not wish to detract from the seriousness of the problem, but something here reeks of fish..
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