PerkinElmer has launched the NEXTFLEX Variant-Seq SARS-CoV-2 Kit v2 to accelerate the detection of SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Omicron.
The next generation sequencing (NGS) solution, which is available for research use only, will allow laboratories to increase sequencing throughput and make reliable variant identifications, the company contends.
Using positive SARS-CoV-2 samples, the NEXTFLEX Variant-Seq SARS-CoV-2 Kit v2 detects mutations associated with all SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Omicron (B.1.1.529). This kit incorporates newly developed NEXTFLEX normalization beads, which reduce turnaround time by three hours, on average, for 96 samples (when compared to other standard library prep kits that require quantification and normalization of individual samples before pooling).
The NEXTFLEX Variant-Seq SARS-CoV-2 Kit v2 also uses 1,536 Unique Dual Index (UDI) barcodes to enable the sequencing of 6,000 SARS-CoV-2 libraries in one flow cell.
