$50K personal genome sequencing
If you want your very own genome sequenced, you know have the chance for just $48,000. Not only will Illumina sequence the genome for you, at 30X coverage, they’ll throw in a Mac for you to store it on.
Read much more about it here:
- GenomeWeb: Illumina Launches Personal Genome-Sequencing Service Using Genome Analyzer II
- Genetic Future: Illumina launches personal genome sequencing service for $48,000
- Forbes: Genomes! Get Your Genomes! Just $50K
This is both exciting, and then also not so much…
Personal genomics with actual sequencing is exciting. Companies like DeCodeMe and 23AndMe only genotypes selected common variants. About a million of them, so covering the genome quite well, but far from the (two times) three billion nucleotides in the full genome, so not likely to capture the rare variants in your genome.
Providing the full sequence is also what Knome does, but while Knome will charge you $99,500, Illumina will only charge you $48,000 (and throw in a Mac).
Of course, the price is what makes it less exciting. While Illumina’s offer is half the price of Knome, it is still far from DeCodeMe (1M markers for $1000) or 23AndMe (500K markers for $400) and not really in the range of the average citizens.
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162-164=-2
June 12th, 2009 at 7:41 am
I agree that the price tag on this service still leaves it out of reach for most people. However, price is only going to come down and I think that this initiative will be quite important in setting up an ambitious infrastructure that covers the full work flow from DNA sampling at the doctors office to a shiny new iMAC with your genome on it.
I guess I am kind of wondering where Complete Genomics went in all this with their 5000$ genome?