By Julia Karow
Genetic analysis service provider DNAVision said this week that it has ordered a HiSeq 2000 sequencer from Illumina.
The company expects to receive the instrument before the end of June and will install it at its facility in Gosselies, Belgium.
DNAVision currently has an Illumina Genome Analyzer IIx and two 454 Genome Sequencer FLX instruments but expects to "grow soon," CEO Jean-Pol Detiffe told In Sequence by e-mail.
Initially, the firm plans to use the HiSeq 2000 for human genome sequencing projects for its pharmaceutical and medical research customers.
The company stressed that it has a number of quality certifications in place, including CLIA, GLP, and GMP certification. In addition, it is ISO17025- and CAP-accredited.
"We want to be the first company to provide human genome sequencing data deemed suitable for medical purposes and move with this breakthrough technology to personalized medicine," Detiffe said in a statement.
The company's announcement comes on the heels of similar news from German service provider GATC Biotech and UK service provider Source BioScience, who both said earlier this month that they also plan to install HiSeq instruments later this year.
Founded in 2004 as a spinoff from the Université Libre de Bruxelles, DNAVision provides sequencing, genotyping, gene expression analysis, biobanking, and other services to the pharmaceutical, food, and biotechnology industries.