VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, MARCH 2021

THE MONTHLY DOSE

WHAT’S NEW AT THE MUELLER HEALTH FOUNDATION

For World TB Day on March 24th, 2021 our commitment is:

“The clock is ticking and it’s time to enhance prevention and treatment options for all forms of TB through new digital technologies.”M

LATEST NEWS: LAUNCH OF OUR MONTHLY NEWS LETTER

The team at the Mueller Health Foundation is excited to announce the launch of our monthly newsletter:

The Monthly Dose

We believe this is a great way to share information with our network and to foster engagement, communication, and collaboration amongst our stakeholders.

We are committed to share interesting news, research, events, and facts around tuberculosis (TB) and hope to engage our community in raising awareness about this deadly infectious disease. Each newsletter will contain a brief update on what we are currently working on at the Mueller HealthFoundation as well as our top 3 picks of novel research findings and news around the prevention and treatment of tuberculosis around the world.

MHF TOP PICKS FOR MARCH

Every month, we at the Mueller Health Foundation like to showcase interesting news and updates in the field of tuberculosis. Below are our top 3 picks for March:

1.The Doctor Will Sniff You Now

Recent research has found that many diseases, including cancer, tuberculosis, and Parkinson’s, can manifest themselves through volatile compounds that change a person’s scent. This finding can provide a basis for novel approaches to how diseases, including TB, are diagnosed. To learn more about what the future of diagnosing diseases might look like and to explore Smell Biology, Pet Doctors, and Deep Nose AI computers, read the full article at: https://www.laboratoryequipment.com/573757-The-Doctor-Will-Sniff-You-Now/

DID YOU KNOW?

    • Around the globe,3 people die of TB every minute.
    • The COVID 19 pandemic and its associated policies, such as lockdowns, have had a negative impact on globalTB detection and care programmes.
    • A global TB case detection decrease by an average 25% over a period of 3months, (as compared to the level of detection before the pandemic) will lead to a predicted additional 190,000 TB deaths.
    • COVID 19 turned back the clock onTB response by 8years.

2. New Biomarker Indicates Individual Treatment Duration

The treatment of tuberculosis is long and demanding. In particular, in cases of resistant tuberculosis, the WHO generally recommends a standard treatment duration of at least 18 months, as there are no reliable biomarkers for an early termination. Scientists have now succeeded in identifying a biomarker that points to an individual end of therapy based on the activity of 22 genes. If validated in patients, in many cases it eventually could allow the treatment to be shortened and will foster the shift towards individualized and precision medicine. Read the full article here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210219111806.htm

3. We’re Better Off with mRNA Vaccines

Harvard Chan School immunologist Sarah Fortune takes on common misconceptions about COVID-19 vaccines, and discusses the ways that mRNA technology could be used to create vaccines for diseases like TB and cancer. To learn more, read the full article here:

DON’T FORGET: MARCH 24TH IS WORLD TB DAY

For more information on how to participate and help raise awareness, go to the StopTB Partnership website:

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/multimedia-article/were-better-off-with-mrna-vaccines/