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Updated: Apr 17, 2026

Generating Whole Bacterial Genomes from Clinical Samples using a Target Enrichment Workflow
Published on: August 15, 2025
Integration of whole-genome sequencing into infection control practices: the potential and the hurdles
Elizabeth Robilotti1, Mini Kamboj1
1Infection Control Program and Infectious Diseases Service, Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York, USA robilote@mskcc.org kambojM@mskcc.org.
Abstract:
Microbial whole-genome sequencing (WGS) is poised to transform many of the currently used approaches in medical microbiology. Recent reports on the application of WGS to understand genetic evolution and reconstruct transmission pathways have provided valuable information that will influence infection control practices. While this technology holds great promise, obstacles to full implementation remain. Two articles in this issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology (S. Octavia, Q. Wang, M. M. Tanaka, S. Kaur, V. Sintchenko, and R. Lan, J Clin Microbiol 53:1063-1071, 2015, doi:10.1128/JCM.03235-14, and S. J. Salipante, D. J. SenGupta, L. A. Cummings, T. A. Land, D. R. Hoogestraat, and B. T. Cookson, J Clin Microbiol 53:1072-1079, 2015, doi:10.1128/JCM.03385-14) describe the breadth of application of WGS to the field of clinical epidemiology.
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