Clinical Microbiomics adds long-read DNA and RNA sequencing with DNASense acquisition

The acquisition adds long-read DNA- and RNA sequencing technologies to the contract research organization’s portfolio of multi-omics technologies for the human microbiome field and extends the offering to new segments including agriculture, industrial and environmental ecosystems.

“DNASense is a first mover in applying long-read technology broadly across microbiome research and industrial applications,” said Henrik Bjørn Nielsen, chief scientific officer (CSO) of Clinical Microbiomics. “Adding this to our toolbox paves the way for synergies with our bioinformatics and allows for deeper exploration of the microbiome’s complexities that will accelerate new discoveries.”

DNA is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Short-read sequencing is currently the most commonly used form of next-generation sequencing (NGS), but innovative long-read technologies offer several advantages.

Sequencing of longer DNA fragments significantly improves the assembly of complex metagenomes and the identification of functional and structural features. This facilitates metagenome-associated genomes (MAG) recovery, resolution of repetitive regions and detection of methylation patterns, and improves the accuracy of meta-transcriptomics by combining RNA sequencing with a MAG-resolved reference.

What’s more, the long-read platform is highly scalable and provides live sequencing data feeds for fast analysis turn-around and customizations.

“Joining Clinical Microbiomics is a pivotal moment for DNASense,” said Mads Søndergaard, CEO of DNASense. “Combining our services, we significantly expand the bioinformatics available to us for high-resolution taxonomical and functional insights in bioindustrial, environmental, agriculture and animal microbiomes.”