Saturday 26 July 2014

Full Genomes launches Y Prime - a new Y chromosome sequencing product

The following press release has been written by Full Genomes Corporation.

Full Genomes Corporation (FGC) is announcing today the introduction of a new Y chromosome sequencing product, dubbed Y Prime. The Y Prime test leverages recent technology advances to economically sequence large portions of a male's Y chromosome, enabling advanced, high-resolution tracing of direct paternal line ancestry.

FGC has worked with industry leaders to develop a new Y chromosome capture approach and has combined it with Illumina "next-gen" sequencing. The resulting data will be processed with the latest alignment algorithms to improve read mapping. The overall result is a cutting-edge product with Y chromosome coverage breadth that is close to that of FGC's original comprehensive Y sequencing product (now termed Y Elite), at a much lower cost. Additionally, the new product is priced lower than the leading competitor, while retaining a significant advantage in terms of quality and comprehensiveness.

FGC is releasing the following comparison statistics as estimates of test coverage based on Y Prime pilot results.



Y Prime will be offered at a standard price of $625. An introductory price of $599 is available for orders placed by August 31, 2014. Y Prime is currently available at the discounted introductory price through the Full Genomes website by ordering the Comprehensive Y test using the coupon code "YPRIME".

The new product is also expected to offer significant improvements in turnaround time for results. Testing will be performed by a U.S.-based sequencing facility.

Additionally, FGC has recently been developing new sample collection protocols, designed to reduce the frequency of delays due to the need for repeat sample collection.

Justin Loe, CEO of FGC, commented, "Our new product is consistent with our mission to deliver the best quality Y sequencing products at the most affordable prices possible, and to continue to innovate with new products targeted to the genetic genealogy community."

FGC will continue to offer the original comprehensive Y sequencing product, with sequencing performed at BGI, under the new name Y Elite. To help customers decide which product is right for them, FGC is releasing BED files to indicate the regions covered by representative tests; these are available at http://goo.gl/pcq6FE and can be used to determine whether a particular site or SNP of interest is likely to be covered by the test. Customers with questions may contact orders@fullgenomes.com.

DAK note: I am advised that Greg Magoon has further technical comparisons available, which are the raw data files from the pilot samples (BAM files and FGC analytical reports), that are also available for comparison for specialists.

Update 29 July 2014
Full Genomes have announced that the Y Prime test will be offered at a new low price of $589.

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