More than 50% of most human infections go undiagnosed. While sequencing-based methods can identify the pathogen, the generally small detection window and poor stability of nucleic acids limit the utility of these tests for estimating unbiased measures of pathogen prevalence. Hence, serological assays are an ideal tool to find circulating and prevalent pathogens in a region. We are developing a Multiple PATHogen Serology (M-PATHS) assay for detecting antibodies against >25 pathogens (viruses, bacteria, fungi, etc.) prevalent in India simultaneously from a drop of blood. This assay will estimate the burden and recent (and past) exposure to various pathogens amongst the general population and health care workers.
