FEATURE
Metagenomics was used to identify SARS-CoV-2 in the community where traditional testing has faced barriers such as correction facilities , college dorms and nursing homes . We know that not everyone can or is willing to be tested for the virus , but everyone goes to the bathroom ! So , we can test for SARS-CoV-2 in water samples and assess its impact in community settings .” Mia Mattioli , PhD
Microbes are everywhere — in the water we drink , the food we eat and in our natural and built environments . The invention of microscopes in the 18th century made them visible to us , and laboratory cultivation methods have enabled us to study them in detail . While these studies have provided immense value , all study has been done in ideal conditions — within a laboratory . Metagenomics — the direct sequencing of clinical specimens and environmental samples — makes it possible to investigate microbes within the complex communities where they live with precise interpretation in a short period of time , compared to traditional methods which can take days or even weeks .
Metagenomics is also being used to study water , soil , stools and food , human and animal guts and has been used to study the spread as well as the predominance of pathogens in a particular locality or specimen . While metagenomics is being used extensively in academia for medical research , and by government organizations such as the
US Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) and the
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ), what does metagenomics look like within a public
Wastewater surveillance sampling for SARS-CoV-2 tracking in Thailand . Photo : CDC
health laboratory ? An environmental laboratory within a public health laboratory ? A standalone environmental laboratory ? An agricultural laboratory ? The quick answer is … it ’ s complicated .
Summer 2021 LAB MATTERS 5