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‘Family Tree’ System
Context:
A groundbreaking study published in Nature introduces a new method to track and identify more infectious variants of viruses and bacteria that are circulating in human populations.
More on News:
- This innovative method, referred to as the “family tree” system, uses genetic sequencing data to monitor pathogens in real time and automatically detect new variants.
- This development promises to revolutionise the way we monitor disease outbreaks, including flu, COVID-19, whooping cough, and tuberculosis (TB), and could be a game-changer in preventing disease and informing treatment strategies.
Key Features of the New Approach:
- Real-Time Monitoring: This can quickly detect emerging variants of diseases, including those that are vaccine-evasive or antibiotic-resistant, without needing expert panels to classify variants.
- Automatic Variant Identification: Unlike current systems, which rely on experts to assess whether a virus or bacterium has changed enough to be considered a new variant, this method creates genetic “family trees” of pathogens and identifies new variants automatically.
- The tool evaluates how genetically distinct a pathogen is and how easily it spreads in the human population, enabling quicker decisions on vaccines and treatments.
- Broad Applicability: This technique can be applied to a wide range of viruses and bacteria, and only a small number of samples are needed to monitor the circulating strains in a population, making it particularly beneficial in resource-poor settings.
- Identification of Resistant Strains: The method can also be used to quickly identify antibiotic-resistant variants, which could help in selecting the most effective antibiotics for treatment and controlling the spread of resistant strains.
Successful Applications:
- The researchers applied this new technique to analyse Bordetella pertussis (the cause of whooping cough) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (the cause of tuberculosis).
- For whooping cough, the method identified three previously undetected variants circulating in the population, highlighting the urgency of enhanced surveillance for the disease, especially in light of rising antimicrobial resistance.
- For tuberculosis, two new antibiotic-resistant variants were identified, which could lead to more targeted treatment options.
Implications for Public Health:
- Faster Response to Emerging Threats: This method allows health authorities to detect variants with the potential to cause greater disease spread or immune evasion more quickly. This ensures rapid vaccine updates or adjustments in treatment protocols.
- Prevention of Disease Spread: By identifying highly transmissible strains and those with resistance to existing treatments, health organisations can act more swiftly to prevent global outbreaks and limit the spread of harmful strains.
- Informed Policy Decisions: This approach provides an objective, data-driven way to monitor and predict which pathogens may dominate, enabling informed decisions on vaccination strategies and public health interventions.
Potential Impact on Global Surveillance:
- The research highlights the potential of this approach to become a vital tool in the ongoing battle against infectious diseases worldwide, offering a scalable, efficient solution to monitor pathogen evolution in real-time.
- By integrating this into global surveillance systems it could dramatically enhance the ability to detect, track, and respond to emerging infectious disease threats, ensuring better control and faster intervention when needed.
