Genapsys reveals GENIUS at AGBT

At the last AGBT meeting Genapsys, a small company from California, presented its new "launch-box" sequencer called GENIUS (Gene Electronic Nano-Integrated Ultra-Sensitive).

This machine, with the size of a toaster, is a new kind of NGS sequencer that apply electronic sensor technology and promise to produce up to 100 Gb of sequences in few hours, with read length up to 1000 bp. Like the MinION they propose to push the NGS market even further, providing a new generation of sequencher which are incredibly small, cheap and easy to operate. A step further to the so called "freedom of sequencing".

Genapsys started an early-access program for the GENIUS platform last week and plans to ship out the first instruments within a few months, followed by a general commercial launch either this year or next year.

The system has an opening in the front to insert a small, square semiconductor-based sequencing chip. A reusable reagent cartridge attaches to the back, and a computer for data processing is integrated. Based on the Genapsys CEO interview at InSequence, library preparation require clonal amplification of the template DNA on beads in an emulsion-free off-instrument process that requires no specialized equipment from the company. While the first version of the Genius will require separate sample and library preparation, the company plans to integrate sample prep into the platform eventually. The template beads are then pipetted into the chip, which has "millions of sensors" and a flat surface with no wells. There, the beads assemble into an array-like pattern, with each bead being individually addressable. This is followed by polymerase-based DNA synthesis where nucleotides are added sequentially. The system uses an electronic detection method to identify which nucleotide was incorporated, but the detection principle remain secreted by now, even if it is not based on pH measurements (like the Ion Torrent technology).

Three types of chips will be available for the Genius, generating up to 1 gigabase, 20 gigabases, or 100 gigabases of data with the sequencing run taking only few hours. Estimated sequencing costs per gigabase will be $300 for the smallest chip, $10 for the middle chip, and $1 for the largest chip. Even if the instrument price has not been determined yet but, Genapsys will provide special offers to customers committing to high usage. This will be something like an usage plan that include the instrument at a lower price, but with a minimum expense in consumable per year. Esfandyarpour, Genapsys CEO, said they have already generated sequence data on the platform, though he did not provide specifics. The data quality will be "equivalent or better than the best product out there," he said.