Biography
Lesley Scott is an associate professor and head of Research and Development in the Wits Diagnostic Innovation Hub within the Faculty of Health Science at the University of the Witwatersrand. Lesley is an applied scientist and holds a PhD in Molecular Medicine with >20years experience in designing, developing and evaluating innovative solutions to address the gaps in diagnostics for priority diseases.
Key Impacts
An ultra-high throughput tongue swab molecular testing platform (NEXAR) for mass TB screening
NEXAR testing is highly centralized and currently limited by manual front-end TS processing, but automated testing targeting 5000 tests/day is feasible. NEXAR PCR does not reach diagnostic performance of Ultra TS, but optimization (e.g. front-end sonication, alternative PCR reagents, lower altitude) may align this technology for high-throughput community screening.
Source: Conference 2024