We validated the nitrate reductase assay (NRA) for the detection of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB) using sodium nitrate (NaNO3) in replacement of potassium nitrate (KNO3) as nitrate source. NaNO3 is cheaper than KNO3 and has no restriction on use which facilitates the implementation of NRA to detect MDR-TB.
We standardized a method to evaluate the growth kinetics of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by measuring quantitatively the reduction of resazurin by spectrophotometry. Growth curves and the rate of growth of twenty-one M. tuberculosis clinical isolates were determined. The method showed technical simplicity and is inexpensive to assess the fitness of each isolate.