diagnosing TB - Oxford Immunotec Ltd
(Isis - 986)
Oxford Immunotec, a 2002 spinout, is developing new ways to diagnose and monitor infection and disease. Its lead product, T-SPOT.TB is a major advance in the fight against the global resurgence of tuberculosis, and in August 2008 successfully gained pre-market approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration.
The technology detects or ‘spots’ individual T cells – immune system cells present in the blood. It was invented at the University of Oxford and the first patent application was filed by Isis Innovation in 1996.
It is focussed on effector T cells (as opposed to memory T cells), as effector T cells are a true indicator of a person’s current infection status.
The T-SPOT technology exploits the discovery that effector T cell populations could be specifically measured by using an existing technology platform (called ELISPOT) - now the basis of the intellectual property licensed by Isis to Oxford Immunotec.
T-SPOT can be used for the diagnosis of diseases simply by detecting the presence of an effector T cell response. This is particularly useful in latent or initially subclinical diseases where there is no recoverable pathogen or reliable antibody response; and thus where conventional techniques fail. However, as T-SPOT is a quantitative technique, it is also able to track the change in a person’s immune status over time, and can be used to monitor disease progression.
Despite the technique’s exquisite sensitivity (measurement down to the individual cell level), it is a simple and robust technique that does not require the use of specialised equipment.
Lead Researcher: Professor Ajit Lalvani
University Department: Nuffield Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital
Date of Disclosure to Isis: 1996
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