Simultaneous Analysis of DNA from Multiple Bacterial Species in a Single Sample

Transgenomic Inc. have launched the WAVE® Microbial Analysis System, which employs Temperature Modulated Fragment Analysis (TMFA), an advancement of Denaturing High Performance Liquid Chromatography (DHPLC) that was developed for automated culture-independent molecular analysis of mixed microbial communities. This extension of the WAVE® System product line opens new market opportunities and is the latest example of Transgenomic’s commitment to providing innovative solutions for researchers ongoing and varied needs.

While WAVE Systems have most frequently been used to detect genetic variations relative to a normal (or reference) copy of a gene of interest, this new application capitalizes on an ability to separate several similarly- or identically-sized DNA fragments that differ among bacterial species in their exact DNA sequence. This produces an output on the WAVE System consisting of distinct peak profiles, which facilitates identification of the various individual species in the specimen from which the DNA was obtained.

Importantly, individual DNA fragments can be isolated following separation on the WAVE System, enabling the DNA sequence analysis of specific fragments derived from each species in a mixture. In contrast, existing strategies for the analysis of mixed microbial communities (or infections) typically require labor-intensive and time-consuming manual techniques that do not readily enable isolation and further analysis of individual DNA fragments.

The WAVE system offers clinical and industrial microbiology researchers a unique solution for the molecular analysis of complex infections involving multiple species of bacterial, fungal, viral or parasitic pathogens.