Validation of the FluoroType MTBDR assay using respiratory and lymph node samples.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB), especially drug-resistant TB, is a global public health problem. This study aimed to validate a new molecular diagnostic test, the FluoroType MTBDR.

Method: Samples underwent routine diagnostic procedures (fluorescence microscopy, culture, species differentiation and phenotypic drug susceptibility testing).

Decreased differentiation of erythroid cells exacerbates ineffective erythropoiesis in beta-thalassemia.

In beta-thalassemia, the mechanism driving ineffective erythropoiesis (IE) is insufficiently understood. We analyzed mice affected by beta-thalassemia and observed, unexpectedly, a relatively small increase in apoptosis of their erythroid cells compared with healthy mice. Therefore, we sought to determine whether IE could also be characterized by limited erythroid cell differentiation.