Researchers at the University of Washington (UW) and the University of Cape Town in South Africa plan to partner on a two-year study to test a lower-cost, simpler and safer method in diagnosing tuberculosis (TB). A $1.02 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to the UW will fund the project.

Tumor necrosis factor – normally an infection-fighting substance produced by the body – can actually heighten susceptibility to tuberculosis if its levels are too high.