Functional molecular infection epidemiology
Encyclopedia
Functional Molecular Infection Epidemiology (FMIE) is an emerging area of medicine that entails the study of pathogen
gene
s and genomes in the context of their functional association with the host niches (adhesion, invasion, adaptation) and the complex interactions they trigger within the host immune system
(cell signaling
, apoptosis
) to culminate in varied outcomes of the infection. This can also be defined as the correlation of genetic variations in a pathogen or its respective host with a unique function that is important for disease severity, disease progression, or host susceptibility to a particular pathogen. Functional epidemiology implies not only descriptive host-pathogen genomic associations, but rather the interplay between pathogen and host genomic variations to functionally demonstrate the role of the genetic variations during infection.
Functional Molecular Infection Epidemiology differs from classical Molecular Infection Epidemiology mainly in that the latter deals with the tagging and tracking of the infectious agent without much concern for the functional/phenotypic characteristics of the agent being tracked. Functional molecular epidemiology, on the other hand, lays more emphasis on genotypic
and phenotypic
correlates of host-pathogen interaction, adaptation or homeostasis. Furthermore, classical molecular epidemiology largely uses “neutral” markers, such as insertion sequence
s and intergenic elements, while functional molecular epidemiology harnesses functionally relevant markers such as SNPs and genome co-ordinates with putative roles in infection biology – both on the pathogen and the host side. Many studies have been conducted which fit the theme of FMIE - for example, acquisition and transmission of the Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis and its role in the development of Type-1 diabetes mellitus
when human gene SLC11A1
undergoes particular mutations in a susceptible host.
The concept of FMIE has become potentially relevant in the aftermath of multiple genome sequencing and resequencing of important bacterial pathogens from many different host/patient populations.
A consortium of scientists in India and Germany is (Project BRIDGE) already formed under the aegis of the Freie University in Berlin and the University of Hyderabad
to explore and investigate the application of FMIE in public health and Veterinary arena.
Pathogen
A pathogen gignomai "I give birth to") or infectious agent — colloquially, a germ — is a microbe or microorganism such as a virus, bacterium, prion, or fungus that causes disease in its animal or plant host...
gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
s and genomes in the context of their functional association with the host niches (adhesion, invasion, adaptation) and the complex interactions they trigger within the host immune system
Immune system
An immune system is a system of biological structures and processes within an organism that protects against disease by identifying and killing pathogens and tumor cells. It detects a wide variety of agents, from viruses to parasitic worms, and needs to distinguish them from the organism's own...
(cell signaling
Cell signaling
Cell signaling is part of a complex system of communication that governs basic cellular activities and coordinates cell actions. The ability of cells to perceive and correctly respond to their microenvironment is the basis of development, tissue repair, and immunity as well as normal tissue...
, apoptosis
Apoptosis
Apoptosis is the process of programmed cell death that may occur in multicellular organisms. Biochemical events lead to characteristic cell changes and death. These changes include blebbing, cell shrinkage, nuclear fragmentation, chromatin condensation, and chromosomal DNA fragmentation...
) to culminate in varied outcomes of the infection. This can also be defined as the correlation of genetic variations in a pathogen or its respective host with a unique function that is important for disease severity, disease progression, or host susceptibility to a particular pathogen. Functional epidemiology implies not only descriptive host-pathogen genomic associations, but rather the interplay between pathogen and host genomic variations to functionally demonstrate the role of the genetic variations during infection.
Functional Molecular Infection Epidemiology differs from classical Molecular Infection Epidemiology mainly in that the latter deals with the tagging and tracking of the infectious agent without much concern for the functional/phenotypic characteristics of the agent being tracked. Functional molecular epidemiology, on the other hand, lays more emphasis on genotypic
Genotype
The genotype is the genetic makeup of a cell, an organism, or an individual usually with reference to a specific character under consideration...
and phenotypic
Phenotype
A phenotype is an organism's observable characteristics or traits: such as its morphology, development, biochemical or physiological properties, behavior, and products of behavior...
correlates of host-pathogen interaction, adaptation or homeostasis. Furthermore, classical molecular epidemiology largely uses “neutral” markers, such as insertion sequence
Insertion sequence
An insertion sequence is a short DNA sequence that acts as a simple transposable element...
s and intergenic elements, while functional molecular epidemiology harnesses functionally relevant markers such as SNPs and genome co-ordinates with putative roles in infection biology – both on the pathogen and the host side. Many studies have been conducted which fit the theme of FMIE - for example, acquisition and transmission of the Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis and its role in the development of Type-1 diabetes mellitus
Diabetes mellitus
Diabetes mellitus, often simply referred to as diabetes, is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the body does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced...
when human gene SLC11A1
SLC11A1
Natural resistance-associated macrophage protein 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the SLC11A1 gene.-Further reading:...
undergoes particular mutations in a susceptible host.
The concept of FMIE has become potentially relevant in the aftermath of multiple genome sequencing and resequencing of important bacterial pathogens from many different host/patient populations.
A consortium of scientists in India and Germany is (Project BRIDGE) already formed under the aegis of the Freie University in Berlin and the University of Hyderabad
University of Hyderabad
The University of Hyderabad is a post-graduate teaching and research institute in India. It was established by an act of the Parliament in 1974 as a Central University. The university also offers courses under distance learning programs...
to explore and investigate the application of FMIE in public health and Veterinary arena.