About this Research Topic
Molecular diagnostics (MDx) have become an essential component of clinical and public health microbiology. MDx (e.g. quantitative PCR, multiplexing of PCR targets) allow speedy detection and quantitation of microbial nucleic acid targets with greater than ever accuracy and sensitivity. Integration of in house and commercial MDx in laboratory workflows, together with other new technologies complement and increasingly replace traditional microbiological methods. While the field of MDx continues to evolve, there are several disruptive diagnostic technologies that have now entered clinical and public health microbiology laboratories and revolutionize this field. These mainly include the so-called ‘omics’ technologies: genomics, metagenomics and proteomics, coupled with other innovative approaches such as microfluidics, point-of-impact testing, robotics and automation.
This Research Topic is developed in collaboration with the European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) Study Group on Genomic and Molecular Diagnostics (ESGMD). It will attempt to collate high-quality papers (original articles as well as reviews) exploring the development and application of advanced diagnostics to enable improved diagnosis, treatment and control of various infections acquired across the One Health. Special emphasis will be placed on the role of next-generation sequencing (NGS) and its various microbiological applications: whole genome sequencing (WGS) of microbes for patho- and epi-typing of pathogens and the use of metagenomics, involving either analysis of the microbiome via (16S) amplicon sequencing approaches or whole genome metagenomics via shotgun metagenomics sequencing, to study microbial populations in clinical and environmental samples. Paper exploring other technologies such as proteomics, mainly MALDI-TOF-MS and the range of its advanced applications and rapid diagnostics are also in scope. We are especially interested in facilitating a cross-talk between various disciplines related to One Health, including basic and applied microbiology, clinical infectious diseases, public health, epidemiology and health policy, computational biology and bioinformatics, veterinary sciences and environmental health and ecology.
Keywords: One Health, Genomics, Molecular, Infection, Proteomic
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.