PerkinElmer NextFlex Variant Seq SARS-CoV-2 Kit v2

PerkinElmer has launched its research-use-only assay, the NextFlex Variant Seq SARS-CoV-2 Kit v2, to detect variants of the virus. The next-generation sequencing-based test uses positive SARS-CoV-2 sample to identify variants, including the Omicron variant. It incorporates the firm's NextFlex normalization beads, which reduces the turnaround time by three hours, on average, for 96 samples compared to other standard library prep kits that require quantification and normalization of individual samples before pooling, PerkinElmer said. It noted that the assay uses 1,536 unique dual index barcodes to enable the sequencing of 6,000 SARS-CoV-2 libraries in one flow cell.