Targeted Sanger Sequencing of a Cluster of COVID-19 Cases in the Surgical ICU of a Non-COVID Hospital: Lessons Learned.

Autor:	Embekkat Kaviyil J; Microbiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, IND., Raja K; Microbiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, IND., Gaitonde R; Public Health, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, IND., Easwaran S; Virology, Institute for Advanced Virology, Trivandrum, IND., Kala V K; Nursing, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, IND., Korol Ponnambath D; Microbiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, IND.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Cureus [Cureus] 2023 Sep 05; Vol. 15 (9), pp. e44755. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Sep 05 (Print Publication: 2023).
DOI:	10.7759/cureus.44755
Abstrakt:	Small clusters of infection due to SARS-CoV-2 in a non-COVID-19 healthcare facility can disrupt services. Here, we investigated a cluster of SARS-CoV-2 cases by targeted Sanger sequencing and clinical epidemiological methods in a non-COVID-19 super-specialty hospital. Epidemiological data were collected in a blinded manner using a proforma to find the risk factors associated with infection. Targeted Sanger sequencing of the spike protein receptor binding domain (RBD) coding region was performed on all the available real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-positive samples that included a patient, his mother, and 11 healthcare workers (HCWs) to determine any genomic variations in the samples from the cluster. All positive cases were due to the Delta variant. However, it detected a unique mutation, N501I, in the RBD region of the SARS-CoV-2 strains. The viral genome extracted from the mother's sample lacked the mutation, thus excluding her from the cluster and pointing out that the outbreak was nosocomial, leading to a focus on infection control measures. Though whole genome sequencing is more universally accepted, in this study, targeted sanger sequencing provided a rapid and cost-effective solution to correctly delineate between the actual cases that form the cluster and other community cases in a pandemic situation. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. (Copyright © 2023, Embekkat Kaviyil et al.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
Externí odkaz:	Zobrazit plný text záznamu