Editorial
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2018. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stomatol. Nov 26, 2018; 6(2): 6-10
Published online Nov 26, 2018. doi: 10.5321/wjs.v6.i2.6
Next generation sequencing in oral disease diagnostics
Gokul Sapna, Sridharan Gokul
Gokul Sapna, Department of periodontics, Nair Hospital Dental College, Mumbai 400008, India
Sridharan Gokul, Oral Pathology and Microbiology, YMT Dental College and Hospital, Mumbai 410210, India
Author contributions: Gokul S formulated the idea of writing the editorial; Sapna G and Gokul S together performed literature review, collected relevant data and prepared the manuscript; Sapna G also contributed in proof reading the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Dr. Gokul Sridharan, PhD, Associate Professor, Oral Pathology and Microbiology, YMT Dental College and Hospital, Institutional area, Sector 4, Mumbai 410210, India. drgokuls@gmail.com
Telephone: +91-22-23542310 Fax: +91-22-27744427
Received: July 23, 2018
Peer-review started: July 23, 2018
First decision: August 20, 2018
Revised: August 31, 2018
Accepted: November 13, 2018
Article in press: November 14, 2018
Published online: November 26, 2018
Abstract

DNA sequencing is the method of identifying the precise order of DNA nucleotides within a molecule. The information of DNA sequencing is of prime requisite for basic biological research as well as in various clinical specialties. They can be used to determine the individual genetic sequence, larger genetic regions, chromosomes as well as to sequence RNA and proteins. Since the first DNA sequencing in 1970s, there has been tremendous advancements in the technologies aimed to determine the entire human genome. The need for rapid and accurate sequencing of human genome has resulted in the introduction of next generation sequencing (NGS) technology. NGS refers to the second-generation DNA sequencing technologies where millions of DNA can be sequenced simultaneously. Some of the next gen sequencing methods employed are Roche/454 life science, Illumina/Solexa, SOLiD system and HeliScope. Application of NGS in decoding the genomic database of various oral diseases may possess therapeutic and prognostic value. This presentation provides an overview of the basics of NGS and their potential applications in oral disease diagnostics.

Keywords: Molecular diagnostics, Next generation sequencing, Illumina, Oral diseases, Oral cancer

Core tip: Advancements in molecular biology has progressed exponentially in the past decade enabling the diagnosis and treatment of various oral and maxillofacial diseases including cancer. Next generation sequencing is one such tool which is used to determine the genetic make up of an individual as well as in identification of various genetic imbalances that occur in human diseases. Knowledge of the various sequencing methods and the genetic abnormalities may aid in its clinical application for overall improvement in disease diagnosis and prognosis.