Urine color test to monitor TB medicine levels in children and adults
Official title: Urine Colorimetry for Tuberculosis Pharmacokinetics Evaluation in Children and Adults
Funded at University of Virginia · NIH-11250115 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses a simple urine color measurement to check how well TB medicines, especially rifampin, reach the body in children and adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Virginia NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Charlottesville, United States) |
| Project start | September 24, 2018 |
| Project end | October 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $616,730 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI137080-09 |
| Project ID | NIH-11250115 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are children and adults being treated for drug-sensitive tuberculosis, especially those who are undernourished or suspected to have variable drug absorption.
✕Less likely to help
People with drug-resistant TB on non-rifampin regimens, or those not receiving the drugs targeted by this method, are unlikely to benefit directly.
What this research studies
You would provide urine samples (and sometimes clinical samples) so researchers can measure TB drug levels using a benchtop spectrophotometer that reads urine color, a method designed to work without needing cold storage. The team aims to use those urine readings to predict important blood drug levels across a full dosing interval and to guide personalized dose adjustments. Work includes children and adults with drug-sensitive TB and pays attention to factors like nutrition and gut infections that can change how drugs are absorbed. The approach is meant to be practical for TB-endemic, low-resource settings where standard laboratory monitoring is hard to perform.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could let clinicians quickly check TB drug exposure at the point of care and tailor doses to reduce treatment failure and prevent resistance.
How similar studies have gone: The investigators have previously shown that urine spectrophotometry for rifampin predicted serum exposure in children and adults, so this builds on promising prior results.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Heysell, Scott K — University of Virginia
- Study coordinator: Heysell, Scott K
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Urine color test to check tuberculosis drug levels in children and adults
This project uses a simple urine color test to see whether children and adults with TB are getting enough of key TB medicines like rifampin.
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.