More often than not, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and some neurodevelopmental disabilities require diagnostic testing to ascertain their treatment. Hence the need for genetic research by scientists and clinicians. To accelerate the activities surrounding the research Bionano Genomics, Inc. (NASDAQ: BNGO) recommends the use of optical genome mapping (OGM) with Bionano’s Saphyr® system as compared to traditional methods.
The OGM presents an array of benefits if the results obtained from developing an essay by the University Hospitals Leuven, Belgium, are anything to count on. According to Dr. Barbara Dewaele, supervisor of the Routine Diagnostics Laboratory for Genetics of Hematological Malignancies, there was significantly faster turnaround time, lower cost per sample, and higher success rates. These came from a comparative study of 40 subjects whose samples were analyzed by OGM.
“The work completed by Dr. Dewaele and her team in developing an OGM assay…has been evaluated and accredited as part of a novel workflow that transforms the way genome analysis for ALL happens…and paves the way for new assays, including one developed for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD),” the CEO of Bionano Genomics, Erik Holmlin commented.
Streamlining the Study of Changes in Chromosomes
Hundreds of clinicians and researchers are dedicated to seeing the truth of genome structure. Saphyr provides unprejudiced, genome-wide structural variant detection of all structural variants. However, Cytopia is responsible for streamlining molecular genomics and cytogenetics through the help of analysis and interpretation tools. It also provides a high-resolution view of chromosomes, commonly known as cytogenetics.
Some researchers may opt-out of using the Saphyr system in their labs. In that scenario, Bionano provides genome analysis services, which aid in accessing data generated by the Saphyr system. The anticipation is that the system would continually play a significant role in enabling researchers and clinicians to fast-track the search for new therapeutic targets. This would also give back to Bionano’s Lineagen business, providing genetic testing services for over nine years, having performed more than 65,000 tests.