2012年9月17日 訊 /生物谷BIOON/ --近日，一項(xiàng)刊登在著名雜志PLoS Pathogens上的研究報(bào)告“Insights from Genomics into Bacterial Pathogen Populations”中,，來自牛津大學(xué)人類遺傳學(xué)中心的研究者從基因組學(xué)角度來深入剖析了致病菌的致病機(jī)制,。
每年由于致病菌的感染、致病甚至死亡給全人類帶來了巨大的精神和經(jīng)濟(jì)負(fù)擔(dān),。目前對(duì)人類健康最大威脅的致病菌包括高致病性呼吸道病原體,、腸道病菌、HIV相關(guān)的感染病菌等,。僅僅肺結(jié)核,，每年都會(huì)引發(fā)150人死亡。
細(xì)菌的進(jìn)化以及藥物耐受性的擴(kuò)散給傳統(tǒng)的病原菌療法帶來了巨大沖擊,，然而通過對(duì)病原菌進(jìn)行全基因組的測(cè)序或許可以尋找到細(xì)菌致病的關(guān)鍵基因,，科學(xué)家就可以以其作為靶點(diǎn)來進(jìn)行致病菌的特殊靶向治療，進(jìn)而殺滅病原菌,，抑制其感染,。
通過提供病原菌的進(jìn)化以及其流行病學(xué)調(diào)查數(shù)據(jù)，全基因組分析方法就可以為新型的細(xì)菌感染療法和靶向療法提供幫助,。通過全基因組方法對(duì)病原菌進(jìn)行測(cè)序可以為我們提供一些信息包括：病原菌在宿主中的進(jìn)化,、轉(zhuǎn)移歷史、病原菌的具體結(jié)構(gòu)等,。而且快速的測(cè)序技術(shù)也可以開辟一個(gè)實(shí)時(shí)定量基因組學(xué)的新紀(jì)元,，這樣，研究者就可以在數(shù)小時(shí)之內(nèi)解決公眾的病原菌健康隱患或緊急事件,。
這篇綜述文章的目的在于指出群體基因組學(xué)對(duì)于致病菌所帶來的變化效應(yīng),，以及幫助我們更好地理解細(xì)菌的致病因子以及其致病的分子機(jī)理。（生物谷Bioon.com）
doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1002874
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Insights from Genomics into Bacterial Pathogen Populations
Daniel J. Wilson1,2*
Bacterial pathogens impose a heavy burden of disease on human populations worldwide. The gravest threats are posed by highly virulent respiratory pathogens, enteric pathogens, and HIV-associated infections. Tuberculosis alone is responsible for the deaths of 1.5 million people annually. Treatment options for bacterial pathogens are being steadily eroded by the evolution and spread of drug resistance. However, population-level whole genome sequencing offers new hope in the fight against pathogenic bacteria. By providing insights into bacterial evolution and disease etiology, these approaches pave the way for novel interventions and therapeutic targets. Sequencing populations of bacteria across the whole genome provides unprecedented resolution to investigate (i) within-host evolution, (ii) transmission history, and (iii) population structure. Moreover, advances in rapid benchtop sequencing herald a new era of real-time genomics in which sequencing and analysis can be deployed within hours in response to rapidly changing public health emergencies. The purpose of this review is to highlight the transformative effect of population genomics on bacteriology, and to consider the prospects for answering abiding questions such as why bacteria cause disease.
