NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – RainDance Technologies said today that it has launched a new service program to support its customers who are developing sequencing-based genetic testing panels. Ambry Genetics, Emory Genetics Laboratory, and the Greenwood Genetics Center have signed up as partners in the initiative, the company added.
RainDance said these partners now will have expanded access to its ThunderStorm target enrichment solution, custom gene panel manufacturing, and technical support.
The Lexington, Mass.-based company said its gene panels enable researchers to use single-plex PCR in picodroplets to track specific human genes in particular regions. Having the ability to put single PCR reactions in droplets makes it possible to create highly sensitive multiplex panels, trims costs, and saves time, RainDance said.
Collectively, these three partners in the service program have previously developed more than 20 RainDance-made gene panels for use in studies of colon cancer, cardiomyopathy, ciliopathies, congenital muscular dystrophy, epilepsy, hearing loss, and autism spectrum disorders.
Ambry Genetics' VP of Business Development Ardy Arianpour said in a statement today that the ThunderStorm-based enrichment "has allowed us to rapidly expand the number of genetic panels we can offer for research projects using next-generation sequencing. Our CancerNext panel, for example, analyzes 22 genes that have been identified as contributors to increased risk for breast, colon, ovarian, uterine, and other cancers."