High-Throughput Sequencing Techniques
Next generation sequencing - Tools and issues for human health

Overview of high-throughput sequencing

Sequencing is a chemical process that determines the order in which the four nucleotides—A, T, C, and G—are linked together in a given strand of DNA. While the first machines could sequence only 800 bases in five days, today’s new sequencers can generate up to 72 terabases (Tb, or 10¹² bases) in less than 80 hours. This became possible starting in 2006, thanks to the convergence of microfluidics, nanotechnology, and advances in bioinformatics. All of these devices are called “high-throughput sequencers” or “next-generation sequencers,” and are grouped under the acronym NGS, which stands for Next Generation Sequencing. With these new mass sequencing technologies, data production capabilities have grown exponentially