TY - BOOK
T1 - Methods for Discovery and Surveillance of Pathogens in Hotspots of Emerging Infectious Diseases
AU - Jensen, Randi Holm
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - Viruses are everywhere, and can infect all living things. They are constantly evolving, and new diseases are emerging as a result. Consequently, they have always been of interest to scientists and people in general. Several outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases transmitting from animals to humans have been recorded through time. At present time, zoonotic diseases account for more than 60% of all human diseases. Furthermore, viruses play a major role in many types of human cancers, accounting for 15-20% of all human cancers. Monitoring and describing novel viruses is therefore of high importance, in order to better prevent and treat diseases with a viral aetiology. Highthroughput sequencing (HTS) is an excellent tool for such discoveries. Here we have characterised the sensitivity of HTS for virus discovery, using a complex sample material containing different types of viruses exposed to virion enrichment compared to samples with no enrichment. We have used these methods to perform pathogen discovery in faecal samples collected from small mammals in Sierra Leone, to describe the presence of pathogenic viruses and bacteria in this area. From these data we were furthermore able to acquire full mitochondrial genomes, not previously published, from six individual mammals, proving that virion enriched data can be used for several purposes. Lastly, we produced a proof-of-concept study that shows that leeches can be useful for monitoring of diseases in wildlife.
AB - Viruses are everywhere, and can infect all living things. They are constantly evolving, and new diseases are emerging as a result. Consequently, they have always been of interest to scientists and people in general. Several outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases transmitting from animals to humans have been recorded through time. At present time, zoonotic diseases account for more than 60% of all human diseases. Furthermore, viruses play a major role in many types of human cancers, accounting for 15-20% of all human cancers. Monitoring and describing novel viruses is therefore of high importance, in order to better prevent and treat diseases with a viral aetiology. Highthroughput sequencing (HTS) is an excellent tool for such discoveries. Here we have characterised the sensitivity of HTS for virus discovery, using a complex sample material containing different types of viruses exposed to virion enrichment compared to samples with no enrichment. We have used these methods to perform pathogen discovery in faecal samples collected from small mammals in Sierra Leone, to describe the presence of pathogenic viruses and bacteria in this area. From these data we were furthermore able to acquire full mitochondrial genomes, not previously published, from six individual mammals, proving that virion enriched data can be used for several purposes. Lastly, we produced a proof-of-concept study that shows that leeches can be useful for monitoring of diseases in wildlife.
UR - http://rex.kb.dk/KGL:KGL:KGL01009231159
M3 - Ph.D. thesis
BT - Methods for Discovery and Surveillance of Pathogens in Hotspots of Emerging Infectious Diseases
PB - Natural History Museum of Denmark, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen
ER -
