Low-cost genome sequencing approach is powering genetics research on mental illness and many other studies

Article excerpt

For researchers on the hunt for the genetic roots of disease, the cost of deep whole-genome sequencing makes it challenging to conduct large genetic studies involving thousands of participants, which are needed to reveal new genetic insights. So scientists at the Broad Institute came up with a clever approach, called the Blended Genome Exome (BGE), that lowers the cost of sequencing by 75% and is becoming one of the most commonly used sequencing methods at the Broad.