Bionano Genomics, Inc. announced the launch of multiple new products and advancements for its optical genome mapping workflow that offer enhanced robustness in sample preparation, decreased turnaround time for DNA labeling and imaging, and improvements in throughput and quality metrics. The new versions of Bionano's sample prep kits, chips and instrument software address customer feedback and can improve the performance in routine higher volume genome analysis applications. Bionano's sample prep kits are used to extract and label ultra-high molecular weight (UHMW) DNA for use on the Saphyr system.

These kits are optimized for performing Bionano OGM applications on a variety of sample types. Generation 2 kits will support blood samples, cell lines, and bone marrow aspirates, with versions for tissue and tumor samples expected later in 2023. The Bionano Prep SP-G2 (SP-G2) and Bionano Prep Direct Label and Stain (DLS-G2) kits have also increased in size from 10-reaction to 12-reaction kits, an upgrade that better matches the company's chip consumables.

The SP-G2 kit enhances UHMW DNA isolation and enables higher sample success rates, fewer user errors and more data generated per run. One of the main improvements to sample preparation is the potential to isolate DNA of higher quality, especially for marginal samples. The new protocol also can eliminate time and process constraints, making the lysis step more user-friendly and better optimized for runs with different sample types, which allows users to batch up to six samples simultaneously.

These improvements in chemistry can ultimately result in increased DNA throughput for more data generated per sample run. In addition, a derivative of the SP-G2 kit supports Hamilton's Long String Vantage automated UHMW DNA isolation. Bionano's DLS-G2 kit enables labeling to be completed in as little as five hours for same-day loading of labeled DNA on the Saphyr instrument.

This improved chemistry can enable an overall reduction in turnaround (or sample to answer) time and make it possible to get high depth answers for cancer samples in as little as three days. Bionano has increased reagent stability from nine months to one year for the DLS-G2 kit, to be consistent with the SP-G2 kit, which can result in less reagent wastage and more utility over a longer period of time. The Saphyr Chip G3.3, anew version of the instrument control software (ICS v5.3) and anew version of Bionano Access (v.1.7.2), enable improved throughput and success rates when two Saphyr Chips are loaded in parallel, allowing three to six more samples to be processed per work week.

These throughput improvements result from a reduction in sample evaporation and enhance the reliability of sample loading and performance on the Saphyr instrument. Higher throughput also results in better first-pass yields and may eliminate the risk of sample depletion when working with complex, longer scan-time samples, like those in cancer research or cell bioprocessing. ICS v5.3 support for the Saphyr Chip G3.3 improves consistency of throughput across runs as well as alignment robustness.