Advanced Techniques in Diagnostic Microbiology

350 Y. Hu and I. Hirshfield
chances for transmission of the agent via transfusion. We are not only to protect the
blood supply from known pathogens but also the emergence of new and unrecognized
and uncharacterized infectious agents. The NAT methods are more sensitive
and specific compared with non-NAT. In the future, NAT technology, such as PCR,
may allow routine screening of donors for all the known and unknown pathogens
of concern to blood safety.
Acknowledgment. No official support or endorsement of this article by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration is intended or should be inferred.
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