Bio-Rad’s New ddPCR™ Library Quantification Kit Optimizes Performance of Illumina NGS Platforms

Date: 
2013-04-16
ddPCR library quantification kit
Bio-Rad's ddPCR library quantification kit enables researchers to optimize Illumina NGS performance via direct measurement of amplifiable library concentrations.

Hercules, CA — April 17, 2013 — Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., today announced the availability of its new ddPCR library quantification kit for Illumina TruSeq sample preparation protocols. Used with Bio-Rad's QX100™ Droplet Digital™ PCR system, the new kit offers researchers a way to precisely and directly measure amplifiable library concentrations.

The TruSeq sample preparation method is the technique behind Illumina's MiSeq and HiSeq next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms. Using the ddPCR library quantification kit to quantify TruSeq DNA libraries maximizes the number of useable reads, enables consistent loading, and optimizes the utilization of every sequencing run. The resulting data provide additional measures of library quality not provided by other methods, including the percentage of nonamplifiable species such as adaptor dimers as well as the size range of library inserts.

Additional key benefits of the ddPCR library quantification kit include:

  • Superior performance — reduces PCR bias due to sample partitioning during quantification
  • Simple workflow — easily incorporated into the TruSeq library construction workflow
  • Efficient utilization of sequencing runs — provides fluorescence amplitude data, a metric for library quality

Kits for other NGS platforms are also in development. Illumina, TruSeq, MiSeq, and HiSeq are trademarks of Illumina, Inc. Illumina is not affiliated with Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.

About Bio-Rad
Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE: BIO and BIOb) has remained at the center of scientific discovery for 60 years, manufacturing and distributing a broad range of products for the life science research and clinical diagnostic markets. The company is renowned worldwide among hospitals, universities, major research institutions, as well as biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies for its commitment to quality and customer service. Founded in 1952, Bio-Rad is headquartered in Hercules, California, and serves more than 100,000 research and industry customers worldwide through its global network of operations. The company employs over 7,300 people globally and had revenues exceeding $2 billion in 2012. For more information, visit www.bio-rad.com.

For more information contact:
Richard Kurtz
Bio-Rad
510-741-5638
Richard_Kurtz@bio-rad.com

Ken Li
Chempetitive Group
312-997-2436 x 112
kli@chempetitive.com