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economic observer reporter zou yongqin on september 9, 2024, hangzhou bgi precision technology co., ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "bgi precision"), a subsidiary of shenzhen bgi genomics co., ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "bgi group"), released its latest sequencing technology - cycloneseq sequencing technology, and two new nanopore sequencers with independent intellectual property rights, cycloneseq-wy01 (hereinafter referred to as "wy01", chinese name "wuyue") and cycloneseq-wt02 (hereinafter referred to as "wt02", chinese name "wutong") to the world.

"from the excitation light sequencer to the self-luminous sequencer, and then to the non-luminous sequencer announced today, we are the only one in the world that combines three types of machines, three different principles, and different sequencing methods together." wang jian, co-founder and chairman of bgi group, said in his speech at the press conference.

life science “lithography machine”

a gene sequencer, also known as a dna sequencer, is an instrument that determines the base sequence, type, and quantity of dna fragments.

"what is the 'photolithography machine' in the field of life sciences? without a doubt, it is the gene sequencer." yin ye, ceo and executive director of bgi group, said at the press conference that scientific progress is driven by new technologies, new discoveries and new ideas, that is, new technologies bring new tools, and new tools bring new discoveries. in the field of life sciences, sequencers came first, and then genomics.

"today, we are ushering in the integration of it (information technology) and bt (biological computing). at the intersection of the three major technological breakthroughs of the internet, genomics, and artificial intelligence, the importance of sequencers has become increasingly prominent. with the support of algorithm models, we can read reports faster and more simply." yin ye said.

xu xun, dean of the bgi life sciences institute and executive director of bgi group, said that bgi group was a user of sequencers in the early days and did not have the ability to develop sequencers independently. however, after encountering a series of "bottleneck" behaviors, it realized that science and technology cannot be bought with money alone, and must be developed by itself, so it started to develop its own sequencer in 2012.

in 2015, the first high-throughput gene sequencer independently developed by bgi group was born. since then, through the methods of introduction, digestion, absorption and re-innovation, the company has continuously enriched its sequencer products and continued to carry out technological innovation.

according to bgi, the two products "wuyue" and "wutong", which were released on september 9, have achieved breakthroughs in core technologies and key components, especially in key indicators such as the number of pore proteins on a single chip, sequencing speed, sequencing read length and accuracy.

among them, "wuyue" is a high-throughput nanopore sequencer equipped with high-throughput and high-density chips. it has the performance of ultra-long read length and long-term continuous measurement, filling the gap of high-throughput chips in the field of domestic nanopore sequencing. many key performance indicators are at the world's leading level; "wutong" is a medium-throughput nanopore gene sequencer with a dual-chip architecture. it has the three advantages of "full coverage, fast reading and free measurement" and has a wide range of application scenarios in the field of life sciences.

the reporter noticed that nanopore sequencing, as a cutting-edge technology in life sciences, has recently attracted the attention of many listed companies. for example, wondfo biotech (300482.sz) stated in its 2024 interim report that it would "promote the application of new platform business nanopore sequencing in the fields of pathogen detection and identification"; jinhe biotech (002688.sz) also stated at its performance briefing on august 29 that the nanopore single-molecule sequencing platform "can improve the efficiency of genetic testing and provide precise solutions."

from the release of the first self-developed high-throughput gene sequencer in 2015 to the birth of the first bgi nanopore gene sequencer on september 9, bgi group has successfully developed sequencers with three technical routes: self-luminescence, excitation light, and non-luminescence. in this regard, yin ye said: "sequencing has never been divided into generations, but the technical routes are different. a good technology is one that can solve the problem."

mgi benefits

bgi technology (688114.sh) is a core member company of the bgi group and is also one of the biggest beneficiaries of the launch of the new nanopore sequencer product.

according to the semi-annual report of bgi, it had signed a distribution agreement with bgi sequencer as early as june this year, successfully obtaining the global market distribution rights for nanopore sequencer equipment, reagents and consumables and other related products, realizing a full-scale strategic layout of excitation light, self-luminous and non-luminous gene sequencing products.

"the biggest advantage of mgi now is that after obtaining the global distribution rights of bgi preprint, we can make corresponding combinations of sequencers of all different technical routes to provide downstream users with a one-stop choice, which is conducive to market expansion." jiang hui, chief operating officer of mgi, said at the press conference that as early as june, after obtaining the global distribution rights, they have been promoting external use, including early testing. currently, there are fifty or sixty users who have installed the equipment, and four instruments have won the bid through public bidding.

"among these customers, there are universities, research institutes, as well as disease control and hospital customer representatives, such as the shanghai center for disease control and prevention and the fourth institute of oceanography of the ministry of natural resources." jiang hui believes that the above-mentioned customer groups actually represent the potential user directions of future sequencer products including "wutong" and "wuyue".

jiang hui also said that the combination of sequencer products with different technical routes will ultimately achieve the effect of "1+1>2", because different usage directions require different data combination outputs to achieve the optimal effect.