ADDF Invests $1.18M to Standardize p-tau217 Blood Tests for Alzheimer’s Diagnosis

GSK Reports Positive Interim Results for DREAMM-7 Trial of Blenrep in Multiple Myeloma

Molbio Diagnostics Invests $30 Million in OptraSCAN to Revolutionize Digital Pathology

BioNTech Acquires Chinese Oncology Firm Biotheus for $950M

The Care and Protection of Children Trust

CPCT Launches Groundbreaking Initiative to Provide Lifelong Free Treatment for Children with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) in Karnataka

Early Comprehensive Genomic Profiling Improves Cancer Treatment Outcomes, Study Shows

EMA Reverses Decision, Recommends Limited Approval for Eisai and Biogen’s Alzheimer’s Drug Leqembi

Exact Sciences Unveils Advances in Multi-Cancer Early Detection with Cancerguard™ Test

MSD and LaNova Medicines Enter Exclusive Global License Agreement for Novel Cancer Therapy, LM-299

Promising CAR T Cell Therapies from BMS and Cabaletta Bio Show Potential for Durable Remission in Severe Lupus

FDA Grants Accelerated Approval to PTC Therapeutics' KEBILIDI™, the First Gene Therapy for AADC Deficiency in the U.S.

Association for Molecular Pathology Publishes Joint Consensus Report on SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Surveillance for Hospitals and Public Health Laboratories

Philips India Unveils Advanced Azurion Imaging System to Revolutionize Cardiac and Neurovascular Care

Tempus AI Study Highlights Benefits of Dual RNA and DNA Sequencing for Advanced Lung Cancer

Ontada and Datavant Partner to Expand Access to Real-World Oncology Data for Accelerated Cancer Innovation

Home
/
insight
/
details

Towards Personalized Treatment: The Role of Genomic Insights in Tuberculosis Control

NextEdge Admin

08 Feb 2024

2 min 38 sec

genome sequencing (WGS),Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health challenge, causing substantial mortality, exacerbated by drug-resistant strains. Conventional phenotypic testing for Mycobacterium involves assessing observable characteristics in a laboratory setting, commonly employed for drug susceptibility testing (DST). This method evaluates the bacteria’s response to various anti-tuberculosis drugs, determining susceptibility or resistance. While providing crucial insights into actual bacterial responses, phenotypic testing is time-consuming, taking several weeks for results.

Addressing this issue is the GeneXpert MTB/RIF and GeneXpert Ultra assays, revolutionizing TB diagnosis by rapidly detecting infection and rifampicin resistance within 1–2 hours. These tests, while pivotal, have limitations in assessing all relevant drugs or gene regions.

Next-generation sequencing (NGS), particularly whole genome sequencing (WGS), has emerged as a comprehensive method. WGS offers unparalleled insights into potential drug-resistant mutations, facilitating personalized treatment. Advancements in NGS enable precise detection of drug resistance-associated genomic variants in M. tuberculosis. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and small insertions/deletions mediate drug resistances, resulting in accurate genotypic DST.

Its advantages extend to tracking mixed infections, heteroresistance, transmission patterns, outbreaks, and identifying superspreaders. However, widespread adoption in high TB burden areas faces challenges due to resource constraints. Specialized facilities, intricate workflows, skilled personnel, and data analysis capabilities are prerequisites. The current WGS process involves cultivating Mycobacterium tuberculosis from a sputum sample, extracting DNA, preparing a DNA library, and utilizing short-read sequencing methods for analysis.

As mutation catalogs improve, genotypic DST may potentially replace a significant portion of phenotypic testing for clinical M. tuberculosis strains. Integrating both phenotypic and genotypic testing methods emerges as a comprehensive approach in managing tuberculosis, optimizing diagnostic accuracy and treatment strategies.