Pathogen detection also can be accomplished using microarray-based techniques. In this method, you apply pre-amplified sample DNA to a microarray consisting of thousands of short, single-stranded DNA oligonucleotide probes from the targets of interest. This method is helpful when you want to screen one sample for a wide range of possible pathogens quickly and in parallel. For example, with one microarray you can test for pathogens such as B. anthracis, Vaccinia, monkeypox, F. tularensis (tularemia), Y. pestis (the plague), ebola, Marburg virus and Dengue 1-4. These arrays are usually readable by standard fluorescence microarray scanners. This method offers specific answers with high throughput. However, as mentioned above, if you need to identify a pathogen, yet you don’t have a well-founded suspicion of its identity, then the sequencing methods discussed above may be more appropriate. For increased confidence, it may also be a good idea to verify any positive microarray results with a sequencing- or qPCR-based method of detection.