Life Technologies Ion AmpliSeq™ Community Panels are a community-driven solution to gene panel sequencing that leverages the expertise of scientific thought leaders and the Ion Community to create gene panels for conditions ranging from cancer to inherited disease. One of the first panels was developed by eight leading European researchers who worked together with Life Technologies scientists to develop a 22-gene Ion AmpliSeq™ Community Panel for lung and colon cancer. The panel analyzes more than 500 mutations in a single-tube assay that requires just 10 ng of DNA input per primer pool, about 25-fold less than alternative gene panel approaches. The Ion AmpliSeq™ workflow is a simple PCR reaction that takes just 3.5 hours turn-around time.
"Using classical methods to screen for mutations one at a time requires so much DNA sample, you often can't look at all the mutations you want," said Dr. Pierre Laurent-Puig, M.D., Ph.D., Professor at the Paris - Descartes University Medical School and a member of the OncoNetwork Consortium. "We have developed a tool that allows us to characterize tumors very easily, using only 10 ng of sample to screen more than 500 COSMIC mutations. Having these kits in our hands will accelerate throughput of the characterization of tumors and make personalized medicine a reality."
The research institutions that developed the panel -- dubbed the OncoNetwork -- include Centro Ricerche Oncologiche Mercogliano, Italy; Leiter Genetik / Molekularbiologie Viollier AG, Swizterland; University of Warwick, UK; Institut Gustave Roussy France; Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, The Netherlands; Université Paris Descartes Centre, Universitaire des Saints-Pères, France; St James' Hospital, Dublin EIRE.
In addition to the OncoNetwork panel, Life Technologies is working with other leading researchers to develop new Ion AmpliSeq Community Panels: Ion AmpliSeq™ AML Panel, for acute myeloid Leukemia research; Ion AmpliSeq™ BRCA1/2 Panel, for breast and ovarian cancer research; Ion AmpliSeq™ Cardio Panel, for heart disease research; Ion AmpliSeq™ CFTR Panel, for cystic fibrosis research and the Ion AmpliSeq™ TP53 Panel, for cancer research. Ion AmpliSeq™ Community Panels are verified by the same researchers who designed the gene content. All of these designs are available today for review at ampliseq.com. Join the 13,500-member Ion Community today to find out more about the program or to contribute to creating Ion AmpliSeq Community Panels.
