As part of its commitment to advocate for the genomics age, Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT) aims to lower the barriers to access the latest NGS technologies.

In line with this mission, the company has launched a preferred sequencing provider program with McDonnell Genome Institute (MGI) at Washington University. The program will make challenging NGS problems easier to solve - thanks to the combined expertise of a world-class research institute and a leading genomics solutions provider.

MGI is a renowned research institute with a rich history in genomics and an early adopter of IDT’s new sequencing technologies. Like IDT, MGI advocates for researchers by sharing its expertise with the community via comprehensive genomics services, which include sequencing, bioinformatics, clinical services, and technical development. IDT has developed a close relationship with MGI over a number of years - MGI’s feedback and input has helped to shape the development of several products such as the unique adapters used on Illumina systems, now also available as Custom NGS Adapters.

Trey Martin, President of IDT, commented, “We are delighted to announce MGI and Washington University as an IDT preferred sequencing provider. MGI has been an invaluable resource to us over the years, as we strive to push our NGS sequencing products further. By pooling our expertise, we will make more NGS research projects possible.”

By working together, IDT and MGI provide an exciting service for researchers, pooling MGI’s expertise in sequencing and informatics with IDT’s expertise in producing high quality, reproducible and flexible products at a price accessible to MGI’s customers. The partnership will also open up NGS to researchers who otherwise would not have access to facilities for large-scale genomics projects. By sending pilot projects to MGI, researchers can attain high-quality, reliable sequencing data, which can then be used to help them decide if larger studies are necessary and to support grant applications, helping to secure funding.

According to MGI’s Director of Technology Development, Bob Fulton, “We have worked closely with IDT for many years and are quite adept in using their products. This new collaboration with IDT will enable MGI to provide world-class sequencing services to research teams that may have more limited sequencing sophistication or capacity. By leveraging MGI’s vast experience and expertise, those groups can focus efforts on other priorities.”

The partnership with Washington University is anticipated to be the first in a series of partnerships, as part of a wider IDT preferred sequencing provider program.

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