|
|
|
|
|
A Big Data Approach to Detecting Viruses
|
|
|
장바울
|
2014-03-22 00:54:39, 조회 : 1,881 |
|
|
A Big Data Approach to Detecting Viruses
An algorithm-based technique for virus detection may help to contain and minimize the spread of future epidemics.
Biological specimens that yield high-quality RNA, such as organ tissue, are normally used in human virus detection. However, this method is not always practical, such as when time or tissue availability is limited.
Blood serum \"is the most common and easily accessible patient specimen in a minimally invasive manner,\" according to a new study led by Adrian Di Bisceglie, chairman of Saint Louis University's Department of Internal Medicine. Serum is typically not used, because the RNA contained therein is unstable and quickly breaks down, rendering the material useless. However, Di Bisceglie and his team discovered a technique that amplifies serum's RNA so that it's viable.
\"We isolate DNA and RNA, amplify the amount of genetic material present in the blood, do ultra-deep sequencing and use an algorithm to search for matches for every known piece of genetic code, both human and for microbes,\" explains Di Bisceglie.
What remains is the viruses' genetic material. Known viruses are separated from unidentified viruses. This information could then be used to screen for known viruses, as well as to track the spread of unknown viruses.
The technique is not without flaws. For one, it's expensive: The estimated cost of tracking a virus could be anywhere from tens of thousands of dollars to $200,000, Di Bisceglie estimates. He notes that this technology would presumably be used almost exclusively by large organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The three weeks of time that it currently takes to track a virus also lessens the technique's usefulness, Di Bisceglie admits. Reducing that tracking period to a couple of weeks or even days—when the technique would do the most good—should eventually be possible. —Keturah Hetrick
Source: Saint Louis University. Di Bisceglie's paper, \"Viral categorization and discovery in human circulation by transcriptome sequencing,\" is forthcoming from the journal Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications.
. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
선교운동소개
나눔의광장 