TY - JOUR AU - Salamon, Hugh AU - Segal, Mark R. AU - Ponce de Leon, Alfredo AU - Small, Peter M. T1 - Accommodating Error Analysis in Comparison and Clustering of Molecular Fingerprints T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 1998 VL - 4 IS - 2 SP - 159 SN - 1080-6059 AB - Molecular epidemiologic studies of infectious diseases rely on pathogen genotype comparisons, which usually yield patterns comprising sets of DNA fragments (DNA fingerprints). We use a highly developed genotyping system, IS6110-based restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, to develop a computational method that automates comparison of large numbers of fingerprints. Because error in fragment length measurements is proportional to fragment length and is positively correlated for fragments within a lane, an align-and-count method that compensates for relative scaling of lanes reliably counts matching fragments between lanes. Results of a two-step method we developed to cluster identical fingerprints agree closely with 5 years of computer-assisted visual matching among 1,335 M. tuberculosis fingerprints. Fully documented and validated methods of automated comparison and clustering will greatly expand the scope of molecular epidemiology. KW - Mexico KW - United States DO - 10.3201/eid0402.980203 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/4/2/98-0203_article ER - End of Reference