Massively parallel sequencing technology in pathogenic microbes.

Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) methods have revolutionized various aspects of genomics including transcriptome analysis. Digital expression analysis is all set to replace analog expression analysis that uses microarray chips through their cost-effectiveness, reproducibility, accuracy, and speed. The last 2 years have seen a surge in the development of statistical methods and software tools for analysis and visualization of NGS data. Large amounts of NGS data are available for pathogenic fungi and oomycetes. As the analysis results start pouring in, it brings about a paradigm shift in the understanding of host pathogen interactions with discovery of new transcripts, splice variants, mutations, regulatory elements, and epigenetic controls. Here we describe the core technology of the new sequencing platforms, the methodology of data analysis, and different aspects of applications.