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Unbiased Deep Sequencing of RNA Viruses from Clinical Samples
Published on: July 2, 2016
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Agnostic Sequencing for Detection of Viral Pathogens
Nick P G Gauthier1, Samuel D Chorlton2, Mel Krajden3,4
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Clinical Microbiology Reviews
|February 27, 2023
Summary
Viral metagenomics offers an agnostic approach to infectious disease diagnostics, sequencing all nucleic acids without prior pathogen knowledge. This review explores its potential for rapid outbreak response and clinical adoption challenges.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Genomics
- Infectious Disease Diagnostics
Background:
- Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has advanced microbial genome analysis and diagnostics.
- Current targeted assays (PCR, NGS) require prior pathogen knowledge, missing novel or unknown threats.
- Public health crises highlight the need for rapid, agnostic diagnostic tools for emerging viral pathogens.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review advancements in metagenomic viral sequencing performance.
- To discuss current clinical applications of viral metagenomics.
- To identify challenges hindering widespread adoption in clinical laboratories.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent literature on viral metagenomics.
- Analysis of performance improvements in metagenomic sequencing.
- Examination of current clinical laboratory applications and challenges.
Main Results:
- Metagenomic techniques offer an untargeted approach, detecting all nucleic acids.
- Viral metagenomics is established in research but underutilized in clinical diagnostics.
- Improvements in sequencing performance are noted, but adoption barriers persist.
Conclusions:
- Viral metagenomics holds significant promise for rapid, agnostic detection of emerging viral pathogens.
- Overcoming challenges is crucial for integrating viral metagenomics into routine clinical diagnostics.
- Further development is needed to fully realize the potential of metagenomic diagnostics in public health.
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