Nucleic acid-based diagnostics for infectious diseases in public health affairs.
Infectious diseases, mostly caused by bacteria and viruses but also a result of fungal and parasitic infection, have been one of the most important public health concerns throughout human history. The first step in combating these pathogens is to get a timely and accurate diagnosis at an affordable cost. Many kinds of diagnostics have been developed, such as pathogen culture, biochemical tests and serological tests, to help detect and fight against the causative agents of diseases. However, these diagnostic tests are generally unsatisfactory because they are not particularly sensitive and specific and are unable to deliver speedy results. Nucleic acid-based diagnostics, detecting pathogens through the identification of their genomic sequences, have shown promise to overcome the above limitations and become more widely adopted in clinical tests. Here we review some of the most popular nucleic acid-based diagnostics and focus on their adaptability and applicability to routine clinical usage. We also compare and contrast the characteristics of different types of nucleic acid-based diagnostics.
Neuroscience Research Institute, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Peking University, Beijing, 100191, China. achy@haikanglife.com
Albert Cheung-Hoi
AC
Yu
Greg
G
Vatcher
Xin
X
Yue
Yan
Y
Dong
Mao Hua
MH
Li
Patrick H K
PH
Tam
Parker Y L
PY
Tsang
April K Y
AK
Wong
Michael H K
MH
Hui
Bin
B
Yang
Hao
H
Tang
Lok-Ting
LT
Lau
D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D021141:Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis / Q000379:methods*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011634:Public Health; D021161:Self-Sustained Sequence Replication