Clinical optimization and validation of laboratory-developed DNA-based assays for Trichomonas vaginalis
Christine Justo is doing her PhD thesis on the development of DNA-based assays and sensors for the detection of microorganisms related to sexual health such as Trichomonas vaginalis, Mycoplasma hominis, and Ureaplasma spp. She is also working on the detection of microRNAs that may serve as biomarkers for host response to infection.
She is now in the phase of clinical optimization and validation of the laboratory-developed DNA-based assays developed in our lab for the sexually transmitted agent Trichomonas vaginalis. To do so, she visited the Armauer Hansen Research Institute in Addis (Ethiopia) at the end of March and the Laboratory of Bacteriology Research of the Ghent University (Belgium) in Mid-April.
After this phase, the objective is to use the kit for point-of-care detection of Trichomonas vaginalis.