Advancements in genomic sequencing technology has helped scientist better track listeria food poisoning outbreaks. It has taken over a decade and although it cost our country almost $3 billion, to develop the cost of genome sequencing cost less than $100 for people to use in the public health sphere.
Specifically, genomics looks at the DNA in a bacteria, fungus or virus as opposed to the normal method of looking at bits of it. This helps gain the maximum amount of information on the DNA sequence studied.
How Does Genomics Help Food Poisoning Outbreaks?
By observing the whole DNA of a foodborne pathogen strain, it allows scientist to link different cases together to contaminated food and or other exposures better than before. The recent berry hepatitis A case in Australia used this technology to help s find the source of the problem.
If this technology continues to improve and becomes cheaper, we can eventually supplant methods that are currently in use and will have important impacts on the way governments and other agencies deal with public health issues.
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