Microbial Sequencing Center (MSC)
Overview
The JCVI Microbial Sequence Center (MSC), sponsored by the National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Disease (NIAID), addresses the scientific community's need for additional sequencing of microorganisms and invertebrate vectors of disease that are considered agents of bioterrorism and/or responsible for emerging and re-emerging diseases. The MSC has the capacity to rapidly and cost-effectively sequence genomic DNA and provide preliminary identification of open reading frames and annotation of gene function for a wide variety of microorganisms, including viruses, bacteria, protozoa parasites, and fungi. A recommendation from a 2002 NIAID-sponsored Blue Ribbon Panel on Bioterrorism and its Implication for Biomedical Research was to support genomic sequencing of microorganisms considered agents of bioterrorism and related organisms. This recommendation included careful selection of species, strains, and clinical isolates to generate genomic data for different uses such as strain identification and targets for diagnostics, vaccines, antimicrobials, and other drug development.
Featured Highlights
We have sequenced phenotypically characterized strains of B. pseudomallei that differ in geographic origin. We also have sequenced multiple ...
A 4x whole genome assembly has been completed and annotated. Ricin, one of the of the deadliest natural toxins in the world and a potential ...
Penicillium marneffei is an emerging fungal pathogen endemic to Southeast Asia and the most prevalent Penicillium species causing fatal infe...
We acquired from Merck, Inc., the genome sequences of a new clinical isolate, CEA10, of an important human pathogen, Aspergillus fumigatus, ...
Funding
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID)