CDC Expanding Disease Identification Tool
MicrobeNet will allow better and quicker germ identification and health response.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recently added a new module to MicrobeNet that allows labs to search signatures of the bacteria and compare them to pathogens in CDC's MicrobeNet library by using MALDI Biotyper systems, according to an agency news release. The addition is in partnership with Bruker Corp.
The new module is immediately available to labs and clinicians using the Bruker system nationwide. Previously, MicrobeNet offered two ways to search pathogens: by DNA sequence or biochemical tests.
"MicrobeNet has the potential to revolutionize public health," said John R. McQuiston, Ph.D., team lead for CDC's Special Bacteriology Reference Laboratory and CDC's lead for MicrobeNet. "This system helps public health labs and hospitals quickly identify some of the most difficult pathogens to grow and detect. In turn, MicrobeNet will help treat patients faster and allow health departments to respond to public health emergencies more effectively."
MicrobeNet allows two-way communication between users and CDC staff who are experts in the diseases that users are searching.