Pakistan

Summary of activities by year

2018

No formal or monitoring visits, but frequent meetings with head of NRL Dr. Sabira Tahseen during visits to Islamabad for other activities.

Ongoing research projects:

1. Bedaquiline Drug Resistance Emergence Assessment in MDR-TB (Bedaquiline DREAM Program) (2015-2019). Janssen Pharmaceutical N.V. Amount US$ 294,900 Collaborating Units: The Aga Khan University, Department of Microbiology and The National TB Reference Laboratory, Pakistan. PI: Rumina Hasan, Co-I: Sadia Shakoor, Joveria Farooqi

2. Bedaquiline External Quality Assessment (EQA) and Validation of Provisional Breakpoints. Janssen Pharmaceutical N.V. (2017-2018). Amount US$ 64,000 Collaborating Units: The Aga Khan University, Department of Microbiology and The National TB Reference Laboratory, Pakistan. PI: Rumina Hasan, Co-I: Sadia Shakoor, Joveria Farooqi

New publications:

S Shakoor, S Tahseen, K Jabeen, R Fatima, FR Malik, AH Rizvi, R Hasan Fluoroquinolone consumption and-resistance trends in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other respiratory pathogens: Ecological antibiotic pressure and consequences in Pakistan, 2009–2015. Int J Mycobacteriol. 2016 Dec; 5(4):392-399. doi: 10.1016/j.ijmyco.2016.09.054

2015

• • In-country technical assistance: visits in Pakistan. Individual country mission reports submitted

  • Shipment of EQA strains received from SRL Antwerp to NRL Pakistan

  • Completion and confirmation of baseline levels of resistance to fluoroquinolones and pyrazinamide amongst non-MDR TB strains as part of the recent anti-TB drug resistance survey in Pakistan.

  • Completion of extension of above project to assess genotypic resistance to rifampicin and isoniazid in the above non-MDR TB strains 

  • Continued collaboration with NRL Pakistan for expansion of the specimen transport project.

2014

• • Formal collaboration agreement with Pakistan

  • In-country technical assistance: visits in Pakistan. Individual country mission reports submitted

  • Shipment of EQA strains received from SRL Antwerp to NRL Pakistan

  • Training/Workshop on diagnostics

    • In-country: Training/Workshop on QMS and biosafety for participants from Pakistan and Afghanistan conducted by SRL in collaboration with NRL Pakistan

    • At SRL level: Training in diagnostics/DST for participants from Pakistan and Afghanistan

  • Drug susceptibility and Proficiency Testing: SRL was involved in molecular surveillance of resistance to fluoroquinolones and pyrazinamide on the strains from Pakistan. 

  • Specimen transport project initiated with NRL Pakistan