"Sputum samples" refers to small amounts of mucus or phlegm that are collected from a person's lungs. These samples are used for testing in order to help diagnose respiratory infections or diseases. Full definition
A highly specific and sensitive fluorescent molecule can rapidly detect tuberculosis (TB) bacteria in sputum samples, according to work published this week in Nature Chemistry1. (scientificamerican.com)
PaMZ's potential emerged from a study in which various permutations of its three constituent drugs, plus one newcomer, bedaquiline, were tested on sputum samples from groups of people with TB in Cape Town, South Africa. (newscientist.com)
[Chinedu Nwokoro et al., «Inhaled black carbon in the lower airways of London cyclists»] Researchers at the London School of Medicine collected sputum samples from healthy non-smokers who walk or bike to see how much black carbon was in airway macrophages — a type of white blood cell that takes in foreign material. (scientificamerican.com)