Even if an organism can survive various transport conditions and will be recovered reliably in available culture systems, identification protocols may not provide clear-cut differentiation based on phenotypic tests and characteristics. Sequencing techniques are increasingly utilized for certain classes of organisms. Good examples are the aerobic, non-spore-forming gram-positive rods, including Nocardia, Corynebacterium, related genera, and mycology isolates.
A more routinely encountered application occurs in virology. Molecular methods allow efficient typing of herpes simplex (type I versus type II) and subtyping specimens positive for influenza A.
