Quick Test to Diagnose Bacterial or Viral Infection
Date: 25.7.2011
Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) have developed a new test that quickly and accurately distinguishes between bacterial and viral infections in as little as five hours.
According to a study published in the Journal of Analytical Chemistry, the BGU group has shown it is possible to distinguish a patient's infection as either viral or bacterial by adding luminol to a blood sample and measuring the glow. Luminol is a luminescent chemical substance used in crime scenes to locate traces of blood.
BGU's study clearly indicated that white blood cells that protect the body (phagocytes) react differently to viral and bacterial infections and that the glow or "chemiluminescence" (CL) can detect those distinct reactions.
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