Illumina Introduces The HiSeq 2500

Illumina (Nasdaq:ILMN) today introduced the HiSeq® 2500, a next-generation sequencing system that will enable researchers and clinicians to sequence an entire genome in approximately 24 hours, “Genome in a Day”. The HiSeq 2500 leverages the continued technology advancements from both the HiSeq 2000 and MiSeq™ platforms.

“The ability to sequence an entire genome in a day with the same high quality data as the HiSeq 2000 will enable new opportunities for researchers to develop medically relevant whole-genome applications,” said Jay Flatley, President and Chief Executive Officer at Illumina. “With the HiSeq 2500, Illumina is taking another significant step forward in enabling our vision of revolutionizing human healthcare.”

The HiSeq 2500 offers:

• Unprecedented Speed and Flexibility – two modes allow researchers to generate 120 gigabases (Gb) of data in 27 hours, or 600 Gb in a standard HiSeq run.
• High Quality Data- system uses the proven SBS chemistry that has made both the HiSeq 2000 and the MiSeq systems the most accurate next-generation sequencers.

• Expanding Applications – enables researchers to sequence a human genome or 20 exomes in a day, or 30 RNA sequencing samples in as little as five hours.
• Industry Leading Simplicity and Ease-of-Use – integrated cluster generation process enables a simplified workflow similar the MiSeq platform.
• Upgradable from HiSeq 2000 – through a simple, field-based upgrade priced at $50,000.

The Company also announced the following performance enhancements to the MiSeq personal sequencer:

• Threefold Increase in Throughput – capable of generating up to 7 Gb per run, expanding the number of applications and increasing sample throughput.

• Longer and More Reads – a new 500-cycle reagent kit supports 2 x 250 bp runs, generating over 15 million clusters per run and enabling more accurate small-genome assembly and small RNA sequencing projects .
• Faster Run Times – Faster cycle times enable rapid turnaround applications, allowing researchers to perform microbial identification sequencing in as little as 2 ½ hours.

“The HiSeq 2500 and the improvements to our MiSeq platform continue to demonstrate the headroom our SBS sequencing chemistry brings to the evolution of next-generation sequencing,” said Flatley. “These improvements will enable expansion into new markets, moving next-gen sequencing applications closer to the clinic, and broadening access to labs of all types around the world.”