The Virus Detective
Saving lives, time and money
Assistant Professor Naushad Ali is ushering in the next generation of virus tests, and it's happening here at the University of Denver.
Currently, testing for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV and T-lymphotrophic viruses (HTLV) requires separate tests that could take days to get results.
But Ali, of DU's Eleanor Roosevelt Research Institute, has developed a way to detect the four viruses and many more in a single test that delivers results in a few hours.
By developing the new method of testing, medical professionals around the world, both in the lab and in the field, will be able to keep data on the diseases' prevalence and identify different strains of each virus. This helps in the treatment and control of each disease.
Ali suspends virus-encoded proteins in active form or antibodies against the virus on a special chip. Antibodies from the blood sample react with the proteins on the chip. By detecting the amount and type of antibodies or directly capturing the live viruses from the blood samples on the chip, the test can identify types of infections and the status of diseases.
"Blood testing in the future will be as simple as a pregnancy test once this system is fully developed," Ali said.
"This is such a powerful system," Ali said. "You could test for hundreds of different disease markers."
Ali has demonstrated his method for the detection of hepatitis C, and is now working with Avidity, a private biotechnology company also based at ERI, to mass produce the chips for the tests. Ali also has received a federal grant from the National Institutes of Health to support his lab and teach DU students in molecular biology.
For Ali, who's studied viruses for more than a decade after watching his father die of cancer, developing the test shows that DU and local biotechnology companies can play a major role in saving lives, time and money.
"It's my profession," he added. "It's my passion."
Published on Aug. 31, 2006