CARLSBAD, Calif., July 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: LIFE) today announced that its new Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit delivers the best exome sequencing performance in the industry*, with up to 98 percent of bases covered at 10x, and up to 96 percent of bases covered at 20x, for a single exome.
The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit enables researchers to sequence single exomes, pairs or trios in a one sequencing run, going from DNA to data in just two days—no need to batch samples and wait weeks for results just to make sequencing affordable. The Ion Proton™ Sequencer and Ion PI™ Chip sequence up to 24 exomes in a week, and the upcoming Ion PII™ Chip is expected to sequence up to 96 exomes in a week, twenty times more than any other benchtop sequencer. The Ion Proton™ sequencer is about 1/5 the cost of the competitor's high-throughput sequencer. Additionally, introductory per-exome pricing for the complete Ion AmpliSeq™ exome workflow is lower than any other sequencing technology on the market.
The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit focuses on the exonic regions of the genome that code for proteins. About 85 percent of the genetic variants that drive human disease come from these regions, yet they account for just 1 percent of the genome, making it an ideal approach for human disease research. Exome sequencing generates 100x fewer variants than whole genome sequencing, yielding a more focused and actionable set of variants for follow up.
Exome sequencing is also significantly more affordable than sequencing whole human genomes, and the data are far easier to interpret. Despite these advantages, exome sequencing hasn't been widely adopted because most labs can't afford large next-generation sequencing systems—which cost up to $1 million—and don't have the bioinformatics experts to interpret exome data.
"The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit with the Ion Proton™ System and the upcoming Ion Chef™ System for automated template and chip loading, provide an exome solution that is superior on nearly every metric for lab scientists, core lab directors and large genome centers," said Ion Torrent President and COO Gregg Fergus. "More importantly, we are still scaling and improving at an incredible pace each and every quarter."
Simplest, fastest sample preparation workflow available today
The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit delivers the simplest and fastest sample preparation workflow for exomes available today based on head-to-head comparisons with competing technology.*
With a workflow requiring less than 60 minutes of hands-on time, the Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit enables exome enrichment and library construction in less than six hours and requires as little as 50 ng of input DNA. Alternatives require up to five hours of hands-on time and up to three days for enrichment and library construction.
"This workflow is simple and straightforward to follow," said Jeremy Stuart, Vice President of Genomic Services at Selah Genomics. "It's similar to PCR and anyone with basic molecular biology skills, even someone with no NGS experience, could successfully perform the protocol. This is going to enable exome sequencing in more labs and accelerate human disease research."
Flexible and affordable on-demand exome sequencing
Until now, researchers wanting to perform exome sequencing were faced with two less-than-ideal choices: 1) use a sequencer so big and expensive that they have to batch-sequence dozens of samples for it to be affordable—and wait for weeks to get results—or 2) use a sequencer so small that it doesn't cover the exome sufficiently to yield high-confidence variant calls. The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit on the Ion Proton™ benchtop sequencer delivers an exome in two days with introductory pricing for the complete exome workflow that's lower than any other sequencing technology on the market.
"As a service provider this system gives us a huge amount of flexibility," said Stuart. "We can take on multiple projects of various sizes and turn them around in just two days, without the need to batch in order to keep our costs down. This is especially important when dealing with urgent samples that require fast turnaround time, such as clinical research specimens."
Complete software solution for rapid annotation and interpretation of mutations
Ion Torrent has automated all of the steps for identifying and interpreting mutations, so virtually anyone can quickly understand the implications of their exome data. Simply choose a predefined Ion Reporter™ exome data analysis workflow, run the sample and within hours receive a list of mutations and associated annotations drawn from dozens of public databases.
The Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit and Ion Proton™ Sequencer are For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
*For complete details on the performance of the Ion AmpliSeq™ Exome Kit and Ion Proton™ Sequencer, go to our web page at lifetechnologies.com/ionexome.
About Life Technologies
Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: LIFE) is a global biotechnology company that is committed to providing the most innovative products and services to leading customers in the fields of scientific research, genetic analysis and applied sciences. With a presence in more than 180 countries, the company's portfolio of 50,000 end-to-end solutions is secured by more than 5,000 patents and licenses that span the entire biological spectrum—scientific exploration, molecular diagnostics, 21st century forensics, regenerative medicine and agricultural research. Life Technologies has approximately 10,000 employees and had sales of $3.8 billion in 2012.
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This press release includes forward-looking statements about our anticipated results that involve risks and uncertainties. Some of the information contained in this press release, including, but not limited to, statements as to industry trends and Life Technologies' plans, objectives, expectations and strategy for its business, contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. When used, the words "believe," "plan," "intend," "anticipate," "target," "estimate," "expect" and the like, and/or future tense or conditional constructions ("will," "may," "could," "should," etc.), or similar expressions, identify certain of these forward-looking statements. Important factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are detailed in filings made by Life Technologies with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Life Technologies undertakes no obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
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Life Technologies Contact:
Wes Conard
415-385-4455
wes.conard@lifetech.com
SOURCE Life Technologies Corporation