Qiagen N.V., a leading global provider of sample & assay technologies that are used to transform biological materials into valuable molecular information, has launched first product in its initiative to advance routine workflows in next-generation sequencing (NGS) applications.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) in San Francisco, Qiagen  will present four new products that improve critical sample preparation processes in the pre-analytical phase of next-generation sequencing. At ASHG, Qiagen also will provide an outlook on additional pre-analytical products under development for advanced NGS workflow solutions, which are planned for launch in early 2013.

The Qiagen pre-analytical products are "universal," compatible with any NGS platform in the market and functional in a wide range of NGS applications. They represent the first launches in the Qiagen initiative unveiled earlier this year, which aims to integrate sample preparation products and novel assay technologies into complete workflows for next-generation sequencing.

"Qiagen is in a unique position to improve the pre-analytical workflow of NGS based on our core expertise in sample technologies and know-how as well as our portfolio of proprietary technologies. These four new products simplify the pre-analytical steps, reduce hands-on time and provide easier-to-use protocols for labs using any NGS platform," said Dr Dietrich Hauffe, senior vice president, Life Sciences Business Area, for Qiagen. "These kits are the first in a broad range of products we believe will transform the workflow for next-generation sequencing. Qiagen is committed to creating complete sample-to-result solutions for NGS, combining innovative instrumentation and consumables for clinical research and healthcare applications. We are looking forward to launching a fully integrated, sample to result solution including our recently announced next generation benchtop sequencer module in 2013. We decided to make these pre-analytical products available already today as they can benefit so many laboratories by improving workflows across a variety of NGS applications."

Qiagen products slated for introduction in 2013 include solutions for integrated sample preparation (primary sample to enriched templates), an innovative next-generation benchtop sequencer, now in an advanced stage of development, new bioinformatics aimed at accelerating NGS analysis time, and a portfolio of gene panels for targeted NGS analysis, starting with preconfigured gene panels for use in cancer.

The strategic goal for Qiagen is to make next-generation sequencing, now limited mostly to life science research, a routine and cost-effective tool in clinical research and healthcare. The initiative seeks to address workflow challenges that currently hamper the adoption of NGS, particularly the time required for data analysis, sequencing costs and regulatory uncertainties.

The four kits currently being launched by Qiagen address critical needs in NGS: Single-cell analysis in NGS needs much higher amounts of starting DNA and therefore requires an amplification step to achieve reliable results. The REPLI-g Single Cell Kit enables sequencing from single cells and minute amounts of DNA with highly accurate whole-genome amplification (WGA); Ribosomal RNA, which makes up approximately 90% of total RNA, uses up sequencing capacity and negatively influences analysis of RNA species of interest. GeneRead rRNA Depletion Kit provides very effective and highly selective removal of ribosomal RNA through novel hybrid capture technology for RNA analysis, which is one of the fastest growing applications for NGS; Traditional NGS requires WGA with multiple runs to process an entire sample, but cancer researchers prefer to do targeted sequencing, saving time and money. The GeneRead DNAseq Gene Panel System enables fast enrichment of target gene panels for NGS analysis, with multiple predefined and validated cancer panels, as well as custom-made gene panels supported by easy-to-use online software for sequence variant analysis;  Library quantification is a required step in every NGS protocol. The GeneRead Library Quant Kits enable reliable and simple DNA library quantification, allowing also non-experts to quickly process samples for NGS analysis. These kits can be paired with other Qiagen products for sample preparation, target enrichment, newly developed libraries and the new NGS platform.