Application of highly portable MinION nanopore sequencing technology for the monitoring of nosocomial tuberculosis infection

Publication date: Available online 23 November 2016 Source:International Journal of Mycobacteriology Author(s): Matthew Bates, Pascal Polepole, Nathan Kapata, Matt Loose, Justin O’Grady Referral hospitals in sub-Saharan African concentrate large numbers of tuberculosis (TB) and multidrug-resistant TB patients, failed by community TB services. We have previously shown, from enhanced screening and through autopsy studies, a significant burden of missed TB infections at the University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia, with many patients dying or being discharged without treatment. With minimal TB isolation facilities and minimal political will to invest in broader screening and isolation, the risk of nosocomial transmission is likely to be extremely high. Studies from other hospitals in low burden settings and in South Africa have shown that next generation sequencing (NGS) is a highly powerful tool for rapidly sequencing whole TB genomes and comparing them to confirm or rule out nosocomial transmission. The established platforms for NGS analysis, such as Illumina, are very expensive, immobile, and require regular maintenance, making them a costly inclusion on a research proposal or programmatic intervention grant. MinION nanopore sequencing has changed the NGS landscape with cheap portable sequencers, rapid simple library preparation (15min), and automated real-time analysis tools. The application of highly portable MinION nanopore sequencing technology for the monito...
Source: International Journal of Mycobacteriology - Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research