Salmonella serotypes
Salmonella classification
New approaches in sub-species level Salmonella classification
from Burkhard Malorny, Elisabeth Hauser and Ralf Dieckmann writing in Salmonella: From Genome to Function:
Salmonellae form a complex group of bacteria consisting of two species, 6 subspecies and more than 2,500 serovars (serotypes). Salmonella identification below species level is most often limited to phenotypic typing methods such as biochemical and serological identification, which are costly, time-consuming and do not always reflect the evolution of Salmonella groups. Newer methods for Salmonella typing and subtyping include genome-based methods such as pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), Multiple Loci VNTR Analysis (MLVA), Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and (multiplex-) PCR-based methods. In the last years further molecular typing technologies were evaluated for this purpose. A recent review discusses some of these emerging technologies and gives an outlook on future developments with a focus on oligonucleotide microarrays, spectroscopic methods such as MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry and special developments such as bead-based suspension arrays using Luminex technology and DNA sequence-based approaches. These new techniques promise significant advantages compared to traditional culture-based methods with respect to speed, ease of use, reliability and automation.
Further reading: Salmonella: From Genome to Function
from Burkhard Malorny, Elisabeth Hauser and Ralf Dieckmann writing in Salmonella: From Genome to Function:
Salmonellae form a complex group of bacteria consisting of two species, 6 subspecies and more than 2,500 serovars (serotypes). Salmonella identification below species level is most often limited to phenotypic typing methods such as biochemical and serological identification, which are costly, time-consuming and do not always reflect the evolution of Salmonella groups. Newer methods for Salmonella typing and subtyping include genome-based methods such as pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), Multiple Loci VNTR Analysis (MLVA), Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and (multiplex-) PCR-based methods. In the last years further molecular typing technologies were evaluated for this purpose. A recent review discusses some of these emerging technologies and gives an outlook on future developments with a focus on oligonucleotide microarrays, spectroscopic methods such as MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry and special developments such as bead-based suspension arrays using Luminex technology and DNA sequence-based approaches. These new techniques promise significant advantages compared to traditional culture-based methods with respect to speed, ease of use, reliability and automation.
Further reading: Salmonella: From Genome to Function