Abstract: Genotyping of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis using methods such as Mycobacterial Interspersed Repetitive Unit-Variable Number of Tandem Repeats (MIRU-VNTR) has greatly enhanced traditional contact tracing efforts and is a valuable tool. However, the emerging field of genomic epidemiology, which relies on whole genome sequencing (WGS), is significantly more powerful in determining both the direction and timing of person-to-person spread of tuberculosis (TB). Yet many public health laboratories are challenged to fully implement TB genomic epidemiology programs.
This presentation will provide an overview of TB genomic epidemiology and its use as a surveillance and outbreak detection tool. Examples of how WGS can be used to support contact tracing and outbreak investigations will be provided, and the progress and challenges in TB genomics for public health will be explored.
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
• Explain how genomic epidemiology works in plain language.
• Describe how genomic epidemiology is applied to public health using a real-world example of conducting TB surveillance and outbreak detection.
• Discuss the challenges in implementing a tuberculosis genomic epidemiology program.
Presenters: Jennifer Guthrie
The presentation can be found here: [ Ссылка ]
