Currently the group is developing methods for the single-molecule-based PacBio instrument. This machine produces very long read lengths (5000 bases) and potential applications include sequencing bacterial and viral genomes and highly rearranged cancer genomes.

Another focus is the Oxford Nanopore minION where we are optimisng approaches and developing tools to sequence small genomes such as bacteria, yeast and viruses, as well as targeted regions from more complex genomes.

Our group has begun to support a new Institute research area: single-cell analysis. Some Single Cell Initiative members sit within our team and many Initiative experiments are performed jointly in the Cellular Genetics and Phenotyping programme and Research and Development laboratories.

We also carry out ‘semi-production’ where we deliver data to Institute research groups that require use of complicated or less robust library preparation procedures, or where smaller numbers of samples are involved. This maintains precious resources and time in production and allows Faculty to focus on maintaining high efficiency, low cost and high quality of output for the bulk of samples going through the high-throughput pipelines.

Mate-pair libraries are provided in this mode which allows de novo sequencing projects to be performed better. Similarly we employ the TRaDIS (Transposon-Directed Insertion site Sequencing) protocol to allow the pathogen teams to find essential genes and the mouse cancer researchers to pinpoint tumour-causing genes.