4 ms·

Maybe 10 years ago. You can buy a mondern sequencing device for 1k usd. Look at ONT minION. Reagents and flow cost of course not included.

• wslh 3y ago
  Thanks! Do you mean that the full DNA string could be retrieved frim these 1k device?
  • epistasis 3y ago
    They return long strings, but not a full chromosome. Additionally, there's always an error rate when reading, typically ~3% of the bases (this is Q15 on the Phred scale [0]). So you want to sequence each chunk many times, typically >30x, though with lower sequencing depth you can use population genetics and a database of known genomes to impute your sequence at the most common sites. Going to >30x will probably take 2-3 flowcells on the MinIon. However, preparing a DNA sample for input into the machine is not trivial and requires training. As does the analysis to assemble all the chunks into your own genome. A further challenge is even buying the equipment. Oxford Nanopore, and most biotech companies, keep very tight control of their customer lists, and if it looks like you are trying to order but don't have a proper molecular biology lab to perform sample preparation and to dispose of the waste products correctly, they almost certainly won't sell you anything. There are also strict legal agreements to return the flow cells when done, etc. So to truly do this, add in the cost of LLC formation and signing up for a biotech startup lab to actually perform the experiments. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phred_quality_score https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phred_quality_score