Molecular epidemiology

Molecular epidemiology uses genetic and other molecular data from pathogens or hosts to investigate disease patterns, transmission, and causes.

Whole-genome sequencing: A method that determines the DNA sequence of an organism’s entire genome. Comparing pathogen genomes can distinguish closely related infections and trace outbreaks.
Outbreak investigation: The systematic effort to identify an outbreak’s source, extent, and means of spread. Genetic data can link cases and test whether they share a source.
Epidemiology: The study of the distribution and determinants of health and disease in populations. Molecular epidemiology extends population-level disease inquiry with molecular measurements.
Contact tracing: The process of identifying and notifying people who may have been exposed to an infectious case. It uses reported contacts rather than genetic similarity to reconstruct potential spread.
Phylogenetics: The study of evolutionary relationships among organisms or genes. Phylogenetic trees help infer how sampled pathogen lineages are related.
Pathogen genomics: The study of pathogen genomes to understand their biology, evolution, and interactions with hosts. It supplies genomic evidence used to track infectious disease populations.
Molecular biology: The study of biological processes at the level of molecules, especially DNA, RNA, and proteins. Its methods and concepts make molecular measurements interpretable.
Serology: The study of blood serum, especially antibodies and other immune markers. Serological evidence records immune response, which may reveal exposures absent from pathogen sequences.
Molecular clock: A method that uses accumulated genetic changes to estimate the timing of evolutionary events. Mutation rates can help estimate when pathogen lineages diverged or began spreading.
Antimicrobial resistance: The ability of microbes to survive exposure to drugs that would normally inhibit or kill them. Genomic surveillance can identify resistance genes and follow their spread.

Linked from 7 pages