2023-08-162023-08-162023Enabulele, E.E., Clec'h, W.L., Roberts, E.K., Thompson, C.W., McDonough, M.M., Ferguson, A.W., Bradley, R.D., Anderson, T.J.C., & Platt, II, R.N.. 2023. Prospecting for Zoonotic Pathogens by Using Targeted DNA Enrichment. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 29(8). https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2908.221818https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2908.221818https://hdl.handle.net/2346/95594© 2023 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). All rights reserved. cc-byMore than 60 zoonoses are linked to small mammals, including some of the most devastating pathogens in human history. Millions of museum-archived tissues are available to understand natural history of those pathogens. Our goal was to maximize the value of museum collections for pathogen-based research by using targeted sequence capture. We generated a probe panel that includes 39,916 80-bp RNA probes targeting 32 pathogen groups, including bacteria, helminths, fungi, and protozoans. Laboratory-generated, mock-control samples showed that we are capable of enriching targeted loci from pathogen DNA 2,882-6,746-fold. We identified bacterial species in museum-archived samples, including Bartonella, a known human zoonosis. These results showed that probe-based enrichment of pathogens is a highly customizable and efficient method for identifying pathogens from museum-archived tissues.engArticle