A Practical Guide for SARS-CoV-2 Whole Genome Sequencing

Strengthen your knowledge of genomics surveillance approaches

Accurate sequencing information is required to inform evidence-based public health decisions to tackle infectious diseases and pandemics such as COVID-19. This course highlights all of the relevant steps needed for processing, sequencing, and analysing viral samples.

This three-week course will provide tools and resources for capacity building aiming to strengthen genomics surveillance approaches.

Investigate SARS-CoV-2 sequencing methodologies

Using research, articles, and videos, you will access information and techniques to optimise your current data handling and processing.

You will learn about sequencing platforms and library preparation methodologies, comparing the benefits and limitations of each approach and its associated protocols.

Apply data quality control and analysis

With an introduction to data quality control metrics and standards, you will learn how to interpret high-quality data and how to perform basic viral genetic diversity analyses.

You will learn how to process and report on your quality control and also the ethical considerations of genomic sequencing.

Contribute to the global response to COVID-19

Once equipped with the skills to gather and analyse your data, you will be able to discuss and plan the most appropriate strategy for your team.

You will gain an overview of how global experts overcame the challenges to tackle a pandemic and how you can apply these experiences to other global health threats.

You will finish this course understanding the entire process of viral sequencing, able to make vital contributions to the development of pathogen genomics capacity in a global context.

This course is designed for diagnostic and healthcare professionals, researchers, and anyone involved in the testing and analysis of COVID-19 samples.

No formal prerequisites. Basic knowledge of molecular biology techniques and DNA sequencing methodologies will be advantageous.

• Fundamentals of viral sequencing
• Welcome to Week 1
• Introduction to viral genomics and sequencing
• Sequencing approches for SARS-CoV-2
• Ensuring sample and data quality
• End of Week 1
• Library preparation and sequencing
• Protocols for SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequencing
• Fundamentals of library preparation and sequencing
• Practical considerations for scaling up
• End of Week 2
• Sequencing analyses and interpretation
• Data quality control
• Basic analyses for SARS-CoV-2
• How to share your data with the world
• End of Week 3