Illumina (Nasdaq:ILMN) announced today that it released its Connected Insights cloud-based software for next-generation sequencing (NGS).
San Diego-based Illumina designed Connected Insights to streamline interpretation and reporting from a range of assay types. This enables labs to scale the use of NGS. They can also reduce turnaround times for clinical reporting by integrating third-party knowledge bases.
Illumina said its initial release supports oncology applications. It coincides with the increasing use of comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) for advanced tumors. The company aims to ultimately support a diverse range of applications, including whole-genome sequencing (WGS) for rare diseases.
While Connected Insights undergoes beta testing in the U.S., Illumina said it offers it commercially in a limited number of countries.
“We’re seeing growing demand for NGS testing in health care systems, and with that comes the need for interpretation of large genomic data sets with complex health implications in a landscape of frequently changing guidelines and drug approvals,” said Rami Mehio, head of global software and informatics at Illumina. “Connected Insights complements our suite of NGS solutions to generate, analyze, annotate, and interpret data consistently—today and into the future.”
More about the Illumina Connected Insights platform
Mehio added that Illumina and peers across the industry aim to reduce barriers to access and adoption of NGS testing. Those include cost, workflow and reimbursement.
Connected Insights enables labs to connect to a network fo more than 45 third-party knowledge sources. These sources provide digital directories for precision oncology. They illustrate the connections between cancer variants and therapies, Illumina says.
The platform also allows users to manage data, potentially enabling standardized interpretation and reporting across NGS test types. It’s assay-agnostic and compatible with variant calling files from any secondary analysis solution. That includes Illumina’s Dragen secondary analysis.
“Connected Insights is the next step in creating a fully-integrated software ecosystem that scales with the pace of discovery, across NGS applications,” said Jing Gao, vice president of software engineering at Illumina. “The ability to share and compare omic data within Illumina Connected Software facilitates collaboration that will advance medical science and patient care.”