Researcher from AU and AUH receives substantial grant
Ole Hilberg from Aarhus University (AU) and Aarhus University Hospital (AUH) is part of a research team that has just received a grant from InnovationsFonden (the Danish innovation foundation) to develop a test for tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis is one of the world's major health problems, and one-third of the world's population is infected and has the disease latent in the body. A Danish research project will now develop new, sensitive technology to discover who is at risk of contracting tuberculosis.
The Danish InnovationsFonden is investing DKK three million in the development of the technology.
”We can treat tuberculosis with little difficulty. But we are not very good at identifying the disease carriers who will become ill with tuberculosis in the future. This is a really big limitation and it is here that this project can be revolutionary,” says Ole Hilberg.
Today it is possible to identify infected persons with the help of various immunological tests, but it is a major challenge to identify the small proportion who go on to develop active tuberculosis. In practice, the question of who will never become ill and who will develop active tuberculosis – and can therefore also pass on the disease – is impossible to predict.
It is estimated that 8.6 million people develop active tuberculosis every year and for 1.5 million of them the disease proves to be fatal.
Further information
Consultant, Part-Time Lecturer Ole Hilberg
Aarhus University, Department of Public Health and
Aarhus University Hospital, Department of Pulmonary Medicine
Direct tel.: +45 7846 2091
OH@mil.au.dk