NovaSeq X Plus, Advanced Next Generation Sequencer - ABSTRACT Replacing the Illumina NovaSeq 6000 Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) system with the new Illumina NovaSeq X Plus NGS system will improve services provided by the UAMS Genomics Core Facility to all users by: i) reducing the cost of sequencing by up to ~80% compared to the current system (NovaSeq 6000), ii) accommodating advanced chemistries allowing for NGS read lengths up to 7KB and thus improving the specificity of NGS findings, and iii) allowing for the storage of NGS reagents at room temperature versus refrigeration. The NovaSeq X Plus system will reside in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Genomics Core Facility, which is an important resource for faculty and students in Arkansas who are engaged in research that impacts human health. The mission of the UAMS Genomics Core Facility is to provide investigators with convenient access, at affordable prices, to the latest technologies for advanced molecular profiling of biological samples. Importantly, this includes NGS-based studies, experiments, and assays. Services are provided to investigators at UAMS, other universities in Arkansas including faculty and students from undergraduate institutions in the Arkansas INBRE network, and importantly NIH Institutional Development Award (IDeA) centers in Arkansas. Three funded IDeA center grants on the UAMS campus that will be a part of the major users group, which will occupy the bulk of time on this new instrument are: i) the Center for Translational Pediatric Research (P20GM121293), ii) the Center for Musculoskeletal Disease Research (P20GM125503) and, iii) the Center for Studies of Host Response to Cancer Therapy (P20GM109005). Additional members of the major user group will predominately be involved with research activities related to obtaining NCI Cancer Center designation for UAMS. Services provided by the UAMS Genomics Core may be “all inclusive” and consist of consultation and in-person meeting(s) concerning an investigator’s question (hypothesis) along with assistance and guidance for an experimental design. Initial meetings are essential in order to manage new users’ expectations and foster their success. Additional NGS service components include: i) sample preparation with QA/QC validation, ii) running the sample on the NGS instrument and, iii) bioinformatics pipeline processing (data analysis). The UAMS Genomics Core Facility is fully supported and supplemented by the UAMS Rockefeller Cancer Institute and the College of Medicine. State-of-the-art genomic scientific instrumentation is essential to facilitate novel research (eg, advanced liquid biopsy assays) for faculty and students in Arkansas. The goal of obtaining NCI Cancer Center Designation by UAMS will be strengthened by the addition of the NovaSeq X Plus NGS system.
