Applied Biosystems and Baylor College of Medicine Summarize Contributions to...

Applied Biosystems and Baylor College of Medicine Summarize Contributions to First Data Release of 1000 Genomes Project

SOLiD System Generates More Than 400 Gigabases of Mappable Sequence Data for Project

Applied Biosystems, a division of Life Technologies (NASDAQ:LIFE), and scientists from the Baylor College of Medicine Human Genome Sequencing Center (HGSC), today summarized their collective contribution to the first data release of the 1000 Genomes Project. As a commercial participant and as part of Applied Biosystems’ collaboration with the HGSC, more than 460 gigabases of unique mappable sequence data has been generated by the SOLiD™ System, representing 65% more than the target for the two organizations when the collaborative project was conceived.

The HGSC and Applied Biosystems are key participants in the 1000 Genomes Project, an international research consortium that aims to sequence the genomes of approximately 1,000 people from around the world to create the most detailed and medically useful compendium of human genetic variation. Organizations that have committed major support to the project include the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, the Beijing Genomics Institute, Shenzhen, and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The project will produce a DNA sequence-based genetic map that will enable researchers to better identify disease-related genomic variation and accelerate efforts to use this information for the development of new strategies for diagnosing, treating and preventing common diseases.

In April 2008, the HGSC established a collaboration agreement with Applied Biosystems to use six SOLiD Systems to expand its contribution to the pilot phase of the project and help researchers to determine the best approach for accomplishing its goals. The HGSC’s targeted contribution to the project using the SOLiD System was 200 gigabases of sequence data. In June 2008, Applied Biosystems joined the 1000 Genomes Project as a commercial participant and committed to contribute a minimum of 75 gigabases of sequence data using the SOLiD System.

As a result of the pilot phase of the project, use of the SOLiD System for the collaboration between the HGSC and Applied Biosystems produced the following results:

The HGSC collected sequence data from 25 genomes, generating 256 gigabases of uniquely mappable sequence data.

The HGSC sequenced 24 individuals at approximately 2.6-fold coverage, and sequenced one individual at 26-fold coverage.

By the end of 2008, the HGSC was generating an average of 15 gigabases per mate pair sequencing run using the SOLiD 2.0™ System.

"One of the reasons we chose the SOLiD System for this research was because of the ability to generate mate-pair reads with inserts from one to three kilobases, which provides very good placement of the reads and allows us to determine genetic structural variation such as inversions, translocations, insertions, and deletions in complex genomes,” said Donna Muzny, Director of Operations at the HGSC.

Applied Biosystems’ commercial participation in the 1000 Genomes Project has enabled scientists to assess technology performance on a diverse set of biological samples. To date, the SOLiD System has contributed the following to the project:

More than 206 gigabases of uniquely mappable sequence data, representing 2-fold more data than the original committed target of 75 gigabases.

These 206 gigabases averaged 17 gigabases per sequencing run, which was generated on the SOLiD 2.0 System. The throughput per run represents approximately 5-fold coverage of the human genome.
In the first data release from the 1000 Genome Project, the SNP data from an anonymous African sample was supported by data from the SOLiD 2.0 System.

In the first data release of the 1000 Genomes Project, the small insertions and deletions (indels) data from an anonymous African sample was generated by the SOLiD 2.0 System.

"Applied Biosystems’ participation with the SOLiD System in the 1000 Genomes Project consortium has contributed significantly to the first set of deliverables of the project,” said Francisco M. De La Vega, Ph.D., Applied Biosystems’ Distinguished Scientific Fellow and Vice President for SOLiD Bioinformatics. “The ability to confidently identify single nucleotide polymorphisms and structural variants as we performed for the Project, confirms that the SOLiD System is ideally positioned for studying the role of human genetic variation in health and disease.”

Other institutes supporting the 1000 Genomes Project include the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, the Genome Sequencing Center at Washington University School of Medicine, the Beijing Genomics Institute, Shenzhen, and the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, as well as other commercial entities with next-generation sequencing technologies. For the complete list of participants see http://1000genomes.org.

The 1000 Genomes Project data generated on the SOLiD System by the HGSC and Applied Biosystems is currently available in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Short Read Archive via ftp at ftp://ftp-trace.ncbi.nih.gov/1000genomes/. The first data release representing the preliminary analysis of four genome sequences are now available to download through the EBI FTP site (ftp://ftp.1000genomes.ebi.ac.uk) and the NCBI FTP site (ftp://ftp-trace.ncbi.nih.gov/1000genomes/).

The SOLiD System is widely used around the world in research laboratories, genome centers, core and contract service facilities, and biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Researchers are utilizing the SOLiD technology for a variety of advanced genomics research, including resequencing for disease studies, transcriptome analysis, de novo sequencing and methylation profiling. The newest release of the platform – the SOLiD 3 System – offers unparalleled throughput per sequencing run at 40 gigabases per run, the highest data accuracy at 99.94%, due to 2-base encoding algorithms, and integrated application workflows. The SOLiD 3 System will ultimately enable scientists to sequence a human genome for less than $10,000 dollars in 2009, with a roadmap that will increasingly drive capabilities toward the $1,000 genome milestone.

Applied Biosystems is a global leader in providing innovative instrument systems to accelerate academic and clinical research, drug discovery and development, pathogen detection and forensic DNA analysis. The technologies it markets include a robust line of DNA sequencing systems and chemistries to meet the increasing demands of the scientific community for higher-throughput, more sophisticated DNA sequencing solutions. Applied Biosystems, together, with Invitrogen – a leading provider of platform independent, essential life science technologies for disease and drug research, bioproduction and diagnostics – is part of Life Technologies Corporation, which markets the life science industry’s most comprehensive portfolio of solutions for molecular and cell biology. Applied Biosystems and Invitrogen products are used in nearly every major laboratory in the world.

For more information, please visit: www.appliedbiosystems.com and www.invitrogen.com.

About Life Technologies

Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ:LIFE) is a global biotechnology tools company dedicated to improving the human condition. Our systems, consumables and services enable researchers to accelerate scientific exploration, driving to discoveries and developments that make life even better. Life Technologies customers do their work across the biological spectrum, working to advance personalized medicine, regenerative science, molecular diagnostics, agricultural and environmental research, and 21st century forensics. Life Technologies had sales of more than $3 billion in 2008, employs approximately 9,500 people, has a presence in more than 100 countries, and possesses a rapidly growing intellectual property estate of approximately 3,600 patents and exclusive licenses. Life Technologies was created by the combination of Invitrogen Corporation and Applied Biosystems Inc. For more information on how we are making a difference please visit our website: www.lifetechnologies.com.