Stanford is one of 10 institutions in the nation selected (link to PDF) to receive a 'single molecule real time' sequencing system from Menlo-based Pacific Biosciences.
The new DNA sequencing machine generated excitement in the scientific community last year after Science reported on its potential to dramatically reduce the cost of decode genes while rapidly speeding up the process.
Forbes' writer Matthew Herper explains how the new technology could advance biomedical research:
PacBio’s machines can deliver, on average, sequences of DNA that are 1,000 base pairs long, with some pieces as big as 6,000 base pairs. It can measure between one and three of these base pairs a second, and deliver an answer in as few as 15 minutes.That makes it very useful in sequencing viruses and bacteria with small genomes.
