title: APOPO's tuberculosis research agenda: achievements, challenges and prospects.
abstract: This article describes Anti-Persoonsmijnen Ontmijnende Product Ontwikkeling (APOPO) recent use of specially trained African giant pouched rats as detectors of pulmonary tuberculosis in people living in Tanzania. It summarizes the achievements and challenges encountered over the years and outlines future prospects. Since 2008, second-line screening by the rats has identified more than 2000 tuberculosis-positive patients who were missed by microscopy at Direct Observation of Treatment--Short Course centres in Tanzania. Moreover, data that are reviewed herein have been collected with respect to the rats' sensitivity and specificity in detecting tuberculosis. Findings strongly suggest that scent-detecting rats offer a quick and practical tool for detecting pulmonary tuberculosis and within the year APOPO's tuberculosis-detection project will be extended to Mozambique. As part of its local capacity building effort, APOPO hires and trains Tanzanians to play many important roles in its TB detection project and provides research and training opportunities for Tanzanian students.
authors.affiliation: Anti-Persoonsmijnen Ontmijnende Product Ontwikkeling, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania. negussie.beyene@apopo.org
authors.forename: Negussie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Beyene
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mahoney
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cox
authors.forename: Bart
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Weetjens
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Makingi
authors.forename: Georgies
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mgode
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Durgin
authors.forename: Dian
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kuipers
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jubitana
authors.forename: Saidi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Egwaga
authors.forename: Deus
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kamara
authors.forename: Fred
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lwilla
authors.forename: Sayoki G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Mfinanga
authors.forename: Amos
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kahwa
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Machang'u
authors.forename: Rudovick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kazwala
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Reither
authors.forename: Stefan H E
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kaufmann
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Poling
mesh_terms: D032761:Animal Experimentation; D000818:Animals; D001530:Belgium; D006801:Humans; D007390:International Agencies; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D051381:Rats; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology*; D013636:Tanzania; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000175:diagnosis*