A metagenomic approach to the characterization of the microbiomes of sickle cell disease-associated leg ulcers. human skin metagenome

In this study, the microbiomes of leg ulcers of sickle cell disease subjects and changes in these microbiomes induced by compression therapy were studied using a metagenomic ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing approach. RNA from wound samples was extracted, and amplified using appropriate bacterial and fungal primers for selected regions (V3-V5 and V4 segments of the 16S rRNA bacterial region and ITS 3-4 region of the fungal genomes) and libraries were constructed for paired end sequencing. The generated sequences were subjected to a detailed analysis of the microbial taxa present in the ulcers using the QIIME metagenomic pipeline.