EMERGE: Embedding Metagenomics in Emerging Infectious Diseases Surveillance in Guinea

Karifa Kourouma of the Centre National de Formation et de Recherche en Santé Rurale (CNFRSR) de Maferinyah in Guinea will integrate metagenomic sequencing into an existing viral hemorrhagic fever surveillance platform in Guinea to enable identification of a broad range of known and unknown infectious pathogens. Guinea is a hotspot for viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola and dengue. The current platform uses PCR-based diagnostics but these lack sensitivity and can only detect a handful of known viruses. Metagenomic sequencing can identify a much broader range of pathogens as well as unknown pathogens enabling earlier detection of outbreaks. They will leverage an existing biobank of plasma and serum samples from patients with viral hemorrhagic fever and test the ability of metagenomic sequencing to identify known and unknown pathogens. They will also implement their approach into the existing platform for ongoing sequencing of new patient samples.