ABSTRACT
Globally, food agencies and public health laboratories support whole-genome sequencing (WGS) as a groundbreaking new tool, poised to substitute various current diagnostic and microbial typing technologies. High-throughput sequencing, also defined as next-generation sequencing (NGS), has fundamentally changed genomics research. In recent decades, NGS technology has gradually advanced, with costs decreasing and the amount and variety of sequencing applications increasing significantly. NGS has contributed to a revolution in food safety. NGS involves the preparation of libraries in which DNA or RNA molecules are amplified by polymerase chain reaction amplification and sequenced. It is apparent that rigorous library preparation methods that provide a generic, reliable source of nucleic acid content from the genome under investigation are of critical importance. Recently launched high-throughput and benchtop systems provide fully automatic sequencing at a lower cost per base and quicker assay times. In addition, the preparing of the library requires the separation of nucleic acids, resulting in amplified DNA sequences. The review outlines evolving genomic sequencing strategies, such as Roche 454, Illumina Solexa, SOLiD, Ion Torrent PGM sequencing, SMRT, Nanopore, Helicos, etc., that could potentially enhance the governance of foodborne disease outbreaks and aid in deciphering the outbreak process utilizing molecular investigative methods.
