Microbes are everywhere—in the water we drink, the food we eat and in our natural and built environments. 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.
While metagenomics is being used extensively in academia for medical research and by government organizations, what does metagenomics look like within a public health laboratory? As we’ll see in this issue’s feature article, the quick answer is…it’s complicated.
Here are a few of this issue’s highlights:
- New Jersey Laboratory Pioneers Prenatal Lead and Mercury Screening
- The Unanticipated Benefits of Virtual Trainings
- The Role for NGS-based Technologies in a Post-pandemic World
- Engaging Non-traditional Partners to Build Biosafety Practices
- Southeast ColLABorators Convene Virtual Tabletop Exercise
- Kansas Department of Agriculture Laboratory: Protecting Animals, Humans and the Land They Share
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