The evolution of Pyrosequencing® for microbiology: From genes to genomes

Pyrosequencing is a unique sequencing method that was developed as an alternative to classical DNA sequencing for short- to medium-read applications. Compared to other methods, it is highly quantitative, fast and inexpensive. Additional advantages include high accuracy, flexibility and ability to automate sample preparation. This article presents a historical overview of pyrosequencing, improvements that have been made through the years and its evolution into a platform that vastly expanded the scope of genetic analysis that could be performed outside of a big sequencing center. In addition, we describe numerous applications in microbiology that have benefited from the pyrosequencing method. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.