Abstract
AbstractBacterial genomics is increasingly used for infectious diseases surveillance, outbreak control and prediction of antibiotic resistance. With expanding availability of rapid whole-genome sequencing, bacterial genomics data could become a valuable tool for clinicians managing bacterial infections, driving precision medicine strategies. Here, we present a novel clinician-driven bacterial genomics framework that applies within-patient evolutionary analysis to identify in real-time microbial genetic changes that have an impact on the outcome of severeStaphylococcus aureusinfections, a strategy that is increasingly used in cancer genomics. Our approach uses a combination of bacterial genomics and novel microbiological testing to identify and track bacterial adaptive mutations that underlie antibiotic treatment failure. We show real-life examples of the impact of our approach and propose a roadmap for the use of bacterial genomics to advance the management of severe bacterial infections.
Publisher
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory