Diagnostic Utility of Metagenomics Next Generation Sequencing Approach to Study Etiology of Meningoencephalitis from Central India

Rajpal S. Kashyap of the Central India Institute of Medical Sciences in India will use metagenomic next generation sequencing (mNGS) to investigate the etiology of undiagnosed meningoencephalitis cases in tertiary care hospitals in India. Meningoencephalitis is a central nervous system disease associated with substantial morbidity and mortality in India. Up to 75% of cases remain undiagnosed because current tests are unable to identify the wide range of causative pathogens. In contrast, mNGS approaches are far more sensitive and have been successfully used to diagnose otherwise undiagnosed cases of encephalitis, thereby improving patient outcomes. They will investigate the value of mNGS as a diagnostic tool in difficult-to-diagnose meningoencephalitis cases with unknown etiology in a tertiary care hospital setting. This will reveal the diversity of causative pathogens, which will help develop more effective treatments and support policy making and antimicrobial stewardship.