NovaSeqX Plus: short-read sequencing at the Centre for Genomic Research

在过去十年或更长的时间里，DNA测序技术的不断进步推动了基因组学研究的爆炸性增长，并已成为回答更广泛的生物科学问题的基本工具。英国科学在基因组学领域拥有令人羡慕的地位，但为了保持这一地位，它必须在新的DNA测序技术出现时投资于它。这里的建议是购买Illumina NovaSeqX Plus测序平台，这是DNA测序市场领先者的新机器，这使得它的以前的机器过时了。它可以在48小时内产生16TBP(16000万亿个遗传密码)，成本约为前一台机器的三分之一。这让我们可以做更多更好的科学。基因组学实验现在更便宜了，这使得更多的研究人员可以在他们的研究预算内使用这项技术。它允许研究人员进行更大规模的实验，这些实验拥有更多的样本，以得出更严格的结果。最后，它允许进行新的实验，否则由于成本的原因，这些实验是无法实现的，其中包括观察数千个基因在数千个单个细胞中的开关方式，或者如何从复杂的细菌或病毒群落中进行深层DNA测序。设备将放置在利物浦大学基因组研究中心，该中心在向英国社区提供基因组学专业知识和DNA测序方面有着良好的记录。它是英国大学中最大的测序设施，与许多设施不同，它支持许多非医疗工作，使其特别适合支持BBSRC职权范围内的研究。它将用于一系列应用，包括作物改良、控制动物疾病、了解基础生物学和开发新方法或技术。它还将作为基础设施，支持英国工业并保持对大流行的准备。我们将通过提供实验设计建议、数据分析支持和基因组学培训研讨会，帮助用户获得这项技术。产生的DNA序列数据可以通过公开可用的储存库向世界各地的研究人员提供。我们员工的职业生涯将得到更高的工作保障和技能发展的支持，这使我们能够保留他们重要的技术专长。该设备将使我们能够减少对环境的影响，因为它使用更少的塑料垃圾，以及从现在不再需要在干冰上运输的试剂的运输成本更低。这项建议是物有所值的，因为(I)DNA测序比以前便宜得多，(Ii)我们能够提供广泛的服务，因此充分利用了机器的能力，以及(Iii)我们能够在我们的实验室提供其他昂贵的设备，以有效地运行设备来准备样本和处理数据。

Successive advances in DNA sequencing technology have driven an explosion in genomics research over the last decade or more and has become an essential tool to answer questions in bioscience more generally. UK science has an enviable place at the forefront of genomics but to maintain this position it is essential that it invests in new DNA sequencing technology as it emerges.The proposal here is to purchase an Illumina NovaSeqX Plus sequencing platform, which is a new machine from the market leader in DNA sequencing and which makes its previous machine obsolete. It can produce 16Tbp (16,000 trillion letters of genetic code) in the space of 48 hours and for around one third of the cost from the previous machine. This allows us to do more and better science. Genomics experiments are now cheaper, which allows more researchers to use the technology within their research budget. It allows researchers to perform bigger experiments that have more samples to give more rigorous results. Finally, it allows new experiments to be performed that would otherwise be out of reach due to cost, these include looking at the way thousands of genes are switched on and off across thousands of individual cells or to deep sequence DNA from complex communities of bacteria or viruses.The equipment will be placed in the Centre for Genomic Research at the University of Liverpool, which has a well-established track record in offering genomics expertise and DNA sequencing to the UK community. It is the largest sequencing facility within a UK university and, unlike many facilities, supports a lot of non-medical work, making it particularly well-suited to supporting research in the BBSRC remit. It will be used for a range of applications, including crop improvement, controlling animal disease, understanding fundamental biology and developing new methods or technologies. It will also act as infrastructure to support UK industry and to maintain pandemic preparedness.We will help users access the technology by providing advice on experimental design, support with data analysis and training workshops on genomics. The DNA sequence data produced be made available to researchers worldwide using publicly available repositories. The careers of our staff will be supported by increased job security and skill development, and this lets us retain their important technical expertise. The equipment will allow us to reduce our environmental impact because it uses less plastic waste and lower transport costs from reagents that now no longer have to be shipped on dry ice.The proposal is good value for money because (i) the DNA sequencing is much cheaper than previously, (ii) we able to offer the service widely, so making good use of the machine capacity, and (iii) we are able to provide other expensive equipment in our laboratory required to run the equipment effectively in preparing samples and processing data.