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Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology

Advantages of PCR assays over more conventional culture-based diagnostics include significantly higher sensitivities and shorter turnaround times. They are particularly useful when patient treatment has already been initiated or for specimens that may contain microorganisms that are slow-growing, di...

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Autores principales: Steensels, Deborah, Vankeerberghen, Anne, De Beenhouwer, Hans
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3859022/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24371441
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/121057
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author Steensels, Deborah
Vankeerberghen, Anne
De Beenhouwer, Hans
author_facet Steensels, Deborah
Vankeerberghen, Anne
De Beenhouwer, Hans
author_sort Steensels, Deborah
collection PubMed
description Advantages of PCR assays over more conventional culture-based diagnostics include significantly higher sensitivities and shorter turnaround times. They are particularly useful when patient treatment has already been initiated or for specimens that may contain microorganisms that are slow-growing, difficult to culture, or for which culture methods do not exist. However, due to genome variability, single target testing might lead to false-negative results. This paper focuses on examples from our own experiences and the literature to provide insight into the limitations of single target testing in molecular biology. Lessons learned from these experiences include the careful design of diagnostic assays, preferably multitargeted, the importance of investigating the incidence and epidemiology of infection in detail, the frequent participation in appropriate quality assurance schemes, and the importance of continuous attentiveness by investigators when confronted with inconsistent results. In conclusion, multitargeted testing in microbiological molecular assays should be a rule.
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spelling pubmed-38590222013-12-26 Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology Steensels, Deborah Vankeerberghen, Anne De Beenhouwer, Hans Int J Microbiol Review Article Advantages of PCR assays over more conventional culture-based diagnostics include significantly higher sensitivities and shorter turnaround times. They are particularly useful when patient treatment has already been initiated or for specimens that may contain microorganisms that are slow-growing, difficult to culture, or for which culture methods do not exist. However, due to genome variability, single target testing might lead to false-negative results. This paper focuses on examples from our own experiences and the literature to provide insight into the limitations of single target testing in molecular biology. Lessons learned from these experiences include the careful design of diagnostic assays, preferably multitargeted, the importance of investigating the incidence and epidemiology of infection in detail, the frequent participation in appropriate quality assurance schemes, and the importance of continuous attentiveness by investigators when confronted with inconsistent results. In conclusion, multitargeted testing in microbiological molecular assays should be a rule. Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 2013-11-25 /pmc/articles/PMC3859022/ /pubmed/24371441 http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/121057 Text en Copyright © 2013 Deborah Steensels et al. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Review Article
Steensels, Deborah
Vankeerberghen, Anne
De Beenhouwer, Hans
Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title_full Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title_fullStr Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title_full_unstemmed Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title_short Towards Multitarget Testing in Molecular Microbiology
title_sort towards multitarget testing in molecular microbiology
topic Review Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3859022/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24371441
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/121057
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