Illumina and Agilent sign co-marketing agreement

The Agilent SureSelect Target Enrichment system, optimized for Illumina’s widely-adopted next-generation sequencing platform, the Genome Analyzer, provides researchers with a method for efficiently resequencing specific regions of interest in the genome. This cost-effective approach reportedly simplifies the lab process while providing even coverage and high alignment rates.

When combined with Illumina’s Genome Analyzer, the Agilent SureSelect Target Enrichment system allows researchers to conduct studies that otherwise would not be feasible.

The new research protocol enables scientists to interrogate multiple regions of interest in order to detect rare mutations, such as those commonly found in cancer, while taking advantage of low sample input requirements. Targeted resequencing also enables scientists to sequence areas identified through genome-wide association studies in addition to sequencing candidate genes and candidate regions, the two companies said.

Jay Flatley, president and CEO of Illumina, said: “A partnership with Agilent underscores our commitment to build upon the utility of our next-generation sequencing technology, helping researchers plan and execute studies at a scale never before possible.

“We continue to expand our portfolio of solutions with powerful tools for studying genetic variation. This solution provides the research community with a cost-effective, automation-friendly, and flexible approach to targeted resequencing for a wide variety of applications.”