Understanding microbial infections using microarray technology

Human microbial infections are symbiotic processes between pathogens and humans that often lead to human disease and death. Microbial infections involve the attachment, growth, and survival of microorganisms on human skin, inside the body, or inside specific cells. Microbial infections can be localized to one body region or migrate to secondary body locations utilizing various transport mechanisms. Understanding host-pathogen interactions related to the expression of essential genes during and after infection can lead to valuable information for biologists and clinicians. Microarray technologies allow researchers to perform genomic characterization experiments rapidly and efficiently. Microarray experiments support the resolution of underlying molecular events that play a role in normal and aberrant physiologic activities in living systems. Microarray technology, coupled with bioinformatics analysis, generates comprehensive insights into relevant genes, proteins, and protein-protein interactions. This review article explores recent microarray research studies from select protozoan and bacterial pathogens to illustrate how researchers utilize microarray technology to examine microbial infection aspects. Microarray studies of pathogen and host genomes at various stages of the infection process will generate a more precise understanding of pathogenic life cycles and pathogen survival strategies. Detailed knowledge of the genes involved in the microbial infection process will lead to discovering disease biomarkers and potent therapeutic solutions.