Los Angeles, CA October 10th 2014 – On Sunday, DeciBio attended the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2014 meeting in San Diego, CA. The 64th annual meeting offered a glimpse into current progress in genetic testing. Not surprisingly, next generation sequencing (NGS) was omnipresent. In this blog entry, we highlight some interesting factoids we ascertained while visiting select exhibitor booths.Affymetrix:"PrimeFlow enables researchers to look at up to 3 RNA transcripts and protein expression at the single cell level. There seems to be a lot of interest for infectious diseases applications –especially for HIV and HCV– and for stem cell research. One of the key advantages of branched DNA is that we amplify the signal, not the DNA."Agilent:Our AriaMx qPCR instrument is generating a lot of interest this year. It has a modular design that enables users to easily switch filter sets, and multiplex up to 6 channels.”BGI:“We have conducted 55K WGS, 75 WES and 60K whole transcriptomes. We have access to 200 sequencers, including many in 2 labs in the U.S. We can match Wuxi’s price [of $1,600 per WGS], although we don’t have access to the X-ten in-house. […] For an extra $30 per sample, we’ll extract the DNA from blood samples, so we really offer end to end solutions.”BioDatomics:“We developed BioDT, [a solution that uses Hadoop] to reduce NGS analysis wait time […] As a result, BioDT can deliver results faster than any other NGS platform. The platform is open source and we have already integrated 250+ popular tools like the GATK, Picards and many others […]Additional features like real time collaboration, version control, and visual results create a better, more powerful NGS capability.”Bionanogenomics:“After a year on the market, we’ve installed 25-30 systems to date. Our customers include a mix of basic research and government agencies, as well as a couple of clinical customers. The primary use is for genome scaffolding. The system lists for $295K, and then it’s $1,100 per sample [$900 for the chip and $200 for labelling].”Bio-Rad:“We’re very proud of the QX200. It now runs not only TaqMan chemistry, but also EvaGreen. The combined system with the automated droplet generator lists at $135K. That’d be $90K with just the manual droplet generator. […] The QX100 and QX200 have been used in 150 publications combined.”Centogene:“We deliver a full WES clinical report in 30 days from date of reception for $3,900. We probably process 50-100 NGS samples per week, including 40 exomes. We continue to see a strong transition to WES.”EMD Millipore:“We’re introducing two technologies for functional genomics focused on the emergence of RNA as the next frontier of biomarkers. The first, SmartFlare Live Cell RNA Probes, enables direct detection of native RNA in living cells which can be used for downstream functional experiments and isolation of cell subtypes from heterogeneous populations - particularly useful for single cell genomics applications. SmartRNAPlex is a revolutionary multiplex miRNA profiling technology based on encoded hydrogel particles that can turn any standard benchtop flow cytometer (including the $15k Muse Cell Analyzer) into a genomics workhorse.”Fluidigm:“We released the C1 with programmability back in June. A couple of weeks ago, we released a protocol for single cell WES that complements are single-cell targeted resequencing workflow. And you know that WGS is going to come next. It’s interesting to see the variety of applications that users want to program their C1 for: RNA-sequencing, bacterial sequencing, epigenetic applications, etc. We also pre-announced our new Juno System for automated genotyping that combines pre amplification and genotyping into one platform. It offers a robust workflow to support highly variable quality and quantities of genomic DNA input. It’s the ideal solution those laboratories looking for more efficient solutions for candidate gene or replication studies or sample QC for their biobank samples.”IDT:"We have had excellent response to our xGen Lockdown Probes and Panels for NGS Target Capture. Now, we are excited to introduce our xGen Predesigned Gene Capture Pools. These allow scientists to select predesigned target capture pools for any human gene, have the gene pools pooled together or placed in individual plate wells, and shipped in 7-10 days, at a lower cost than custom designed target capture panels. This provides an extremely flexible, easy to use, and affordable means for researchers to undertake panel development and optimization.Illumina:In the center of the exhibit hall, Illumina displayed a number of their instruments, including the awaited Neoprep platform (release date: H1 2015). Their dominant position was confirmed in yesterday’s earnings call (updated 2014 revenue growth guidance: 30%!).“I think one of the most exciting recent development for us is the new 250 bp paired-end chemistry that will launched by the end of the year on the X-ten. Besides that, we’re excited to see continued growth in BaseSpace, which now has more than 50 apps available.Invitae:“We sequence 220 genes at 450x coverage and only report what our customers want to know. It's $1,500 whether you want 2 genes or 30 genes with appropriate clinical indication. Our test menu will expand in the coming year.”Knome:“We released v3.1 of knoSYS this week. We continue to believe that many clinical customers do not want their data on the cloud, so having an appliance that can store data behind their firewall is important. We hear a lot of customers being interested in in silico panels.”Life Technologies:“We’re proud to announce the launch of the PGM Dx at ASHG. […] We’ve also received great reception of the Ion Chef. We’ve placed more than 10 [Chefs] in the San Diego area alone in the last 6 months. At $50K, it’s a relatively affordable instrument, but many researchers are waiting for the next round of funding to purchase it. […] The P II chip should be released in early 2015, and deliver about ~50 Gb of data.”Nanostring:“We’ve put a strong focus on translational research, and done a good job at bringing the research conducted on our platforms into the clinic.”Qiagen:“I expect us to launch the GeneReader in late 2015. There is really no point in us releasing the instrument before it is fully integrated with our end to end solutions, and the CLC and Ingenuity integration take time. Our NGS products have proven their medals in research settings, and we expect to do well as we move to diagnostics.”Quintiles:“We don’t offer WGS, although unlike many other [smaller] CROs, we would have the infrastructure to support it. There are plenty of companies that you could get WGS from at an affordable price. About 70%+ of our genomics customers are biopharma customers; others are institutional.”Oxford Nanopore:“Well, you’ll have to talk to [blank] about this. We want to let our MinION Access Programme (MAP) customers tell the story of what the technology can do.”Pathway genomics:"As we highlighted in our press release, we just released a patient app that allows existing patients to view their genetic results on mobile devices"Raindance:“We’ve installed the Thunderstorm at more than 50 customer sites. Myriad has been using it for all of its myRisk tests very successfully. You just don’t get better amplification uniformity than with our systems. [...] The RainDrop dPCR System is delivering ultrasensitive detection for investigators who are identifying cell-free DNA in plasma. This unlocks the ability to potentially detect cancer relapse or find viral reservoirs in clinical and translational studies.”Roche:“My customers are going to miss the GS Junior. Many of them are asking me: ‘what are you going to get rid off next?’ But I think we have a very smart team of people working on the next generation of NGS instruments.”Wuxi:“We offer our services mostly to pharmaceutical customers. We charge about $1,600 per genome for high volume customers.”Disclaimer: Some of the companies listed above are DeciBio clients or customers

Author: Stephane Budel, Partner at DeciBio, LLCConnect with Stephane Budel on Google+https://plus.google.com/+StephaneBudelComplete list of Exhibitors:For those interested in genomics players, we provide the entire list of exhibitors below. It can also be found on the ASHG website.23andMe, Active Motif, Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp., Advaita Bioinformatics, Advanced Analytical, Affymetrix, Agilent Technologies, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Aline Biosciences Group, Alpaqua Engineering, Ambry Genetics, American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics, American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics, American Heart Association, American Journal of Human Genetics, American Society of Human Genetics, Amicus Therapeutics, Analytic Jena, Annai Systems Inc., ApolloGen, Appistry, Applied Spectral Imaging, Ariosa Diagnostics, Arraystar Inc., Artel, ARUP Laboratories, ASHG/FASEB Career Resources, Association for Molecular Pathology, ASURAGEN, AutoGen, Ayasdi, Azco Biotech., Baylor College of Medicine, B. Braun CeGaT, BC Platforms Ltd, Beckman Coulter Genomics, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, BGI Tech, Bina Technologies, BIOBASE Corporation, BioDatomics, BioDiscovery, BioFire Defense, BioMarin Medical Affairs, BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., BioMicroLab, BioNano Genomics, Bioo Scientific, Bio-Rad, Biosearch Technologies, Blueprint Genetics, Broad Institute Genomics Platform, Cancer Genetics, Cartagenia, Cell Press, Center for Inherited Disease Research (CIDR), Centogene AG, Cergentis, chemagen from PerkinElmer, Chroma/89 North, ChunLab, CIHR Institute of Genetics, Claritas Genomics, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, Columbia University Medical Center, CombiMatrix Diagnostics, Connective Tissue Gene Tests, Coriell Institute for Medical Research, Covaris Inc., Cypher Genomics, Cytocell, DeNovix Inc., Diagenode Inc, Diploid, DNA Genotek, DNA Link USA Inc., DNAnexus, DNASTAR, Douglas Scientific, Edico Genome Inc., Edimer Pharmaceuticals, Elsevier, Embi Tec, EMD Millipore, Emory Genetics Laboratory, Enzo Life Sciences, Enzymatics, EpigenDx, Epigentek Group Inc., European Human Genetics Conference 2015, Expression Analysis, FDNA Inc., Fluidigm Corporation, FLUIDX, Fluxion Biosciences, Formulatrix, FSHD Champions, Fulgent Diagnostics, GE Healthcare, GENALICE, Gene by Gene, Gene Codes Corporation, GeneDx, GeneInsight, GeneReviews, Gene Tests, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, Genetic Information Management Systems, Genetics Society of America/G3 - Genes, Gene Tools, Genial Genetic Solutions/Rainbow Scientific, GenoLogics, Genomatix Software, Genome Diagnostics Nijmegen, Genzyme, Globus Genomics, Golden Helix, Greenwood Genetic Center, Hamilton Company, Hitachi, Human Variome Project Int. Ltd, Hussman Institute for Human Genomics - Center for Genome Technology at U.Miami, Hyperion Therapeutics, ICHG 2016, Illumina, infoQuant, Integrated DNA Technologies, Integrated Genetics/LabCorp, Interactive Biosoftware, Invitae, Invivoscribe Technologies, The Scientist, JAMA Network, JMP Division of SAS Institute Inc., JN Medsys, JSI medical systems GmbH, Kapa Biosystems Inc, Knome, KromaTiD, Lab7 Systems, Labcyte Inc., Laboratory for Molecular Medicine, Labroots, LabWare, Lathrop Engineering Inc., LC Sciences, Leica Biosystems, Lexogen GmbH, LGC, Life & Brain GmbH, Liferiver Bio-Tech Corp., Life Technologies, Macrogen Clinical Laboratory, MagBio Genomics, Maverix Biomics, Mawi DNA Technologies, McGraw-Hill Medical, MedGenome Inc., MediSapiens Inc., MetaSystems, Mount Sinai Genetic Testing Laboratory, MRC-Holland, Mutant Mouse Regional Resource Center (MMRRC), MYcroarray, Myriad Genetic Laboratories, NanoString Technologies, Natera, National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Human Genome Research Institute, Nature Publishing Group, NBSTRN/NCC, NeuroScience, New England Biolabs, Nextcode Health, NHLBI Resequencing & Genotyping Service, Norgen Biotek Corp., Novogene Bioinformatics Technology Co., Oasis Diagnostics Corporation, Omega Bio-Tek, Omicia, ORPHANET, Otogenetics Corporation, Oxford Gene Technology, Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd, Oxford University Press, Pacific Biosciences, Partek Incorporated, Pathway Genomics, PerkinElmer, Personalis, Personome, Pfizer, PhenX Toolkit, PREMAITHA HEALTH, PreventionGenetics LLC, Progeny Software, Promega Corporation, Proove Biosciences, QIAGEN Bioinformatics, QIAGEN Inc., RainDance Technologies, Rare Disease Communications, ReachMD, Recordati Rare Diseases, Regeneron Genetics Center, Retrophin, Roche Diagnostics Corporation, RUCDR Infinite Biologics, RURO Inc., Sage Science Inc., SCC Soft Computer, Science/AAAS, SciGene, Seven Bridges Genomics, Shire, SimulConsult, Sobi, SoftGenetics, Sony DADC, Source BioScience, Springer, STARLIMS, Station X, Strand Genomics, Streck, Sunquest Information Systems, Swift Biosciences, Tecan, Technidata, The Focus Foundation, The Jackson Laboratory, The PMD Foundation, The University of Chicago Genetic Services, Thomson Reuters, Transgenomic, Trinean, Tute Genomics, UCLA Clinical Genomics Center, V&P Scientific, WaferGen Biosystems, WHEATON, Wiley, World Fusion US, WuXi AppTec, Yourgene Bioscience, Zymo Research Corporation,