Science has identified, described and catalogued thousands of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and abnormal proteins; and hundreds of cell-surface molecules, which are part of the Cluster Differentiations. Knowledge of the many thousands of pathogens is reported in texts and journals, yet is seldom incorporated into medical practice to aid in diagnosing the causes of chronic diseases.
We need to develop diagnostic tools for use in medical practices to test for many known pathogens at the same time, in an efficient and cost-effective manner; and to identify which cell-surface molecules are triggered by which underlying infectious pathogens. For instance, chronic intracellular infections can cause many different chronic diseases; and TNF-alpha is an inflammatory protein, which is a super category of molecules within Cluster Differentiations, that can be triggered by an intracellular infection.
Diagnostic tools to test patients for many different pathogens, in one test, would help in understanding the root causes of chronic disease. Broad diagnostic testing for pathogens in chronic disease could reveal the patterns and relationships between chronic diseases, and between a chronic disease and co-morbid conditions.
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