Helicos BioSciences releases transcriptome sequencing datasets as open access

Helicos BioSciences has announced the release of transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq) datasets on the HeliSphere Technology Center, the company's open access Web site for sharing Helicos datasets and bioinformatics software tools.

Helicos's amplification and ligation-free approach virtually eliminates the creation of false-positive splicing and fusion events, frequently observed in other RNA-Seq datasets.

Helicos RNA-Seq represents a powerful application for the Helicos Genetic Analysis System by providing researchers with the ability to obtain deep sequence coverage of the transcriptome for the elucidation of novel transcripts, novel splice forms, and allele-specific expression patterns, without the biases, artifacts and complexity introduced by amplification and ligation. RNA-Seq was performed using polyadenylated RNA from human brain and liver tissues, resulting in the generation of ~16 million aligned reads per channel for each sample.

With the high number of reads per channel and an extremely simple sample preparation process, the Helicos platform provides the most comprehensive view of the transcriptome for the lowest cost, allowing the analysis of many samples in a single 50-channel run of the HeliScope Single Molecule Sequencer.

“Our collaborators have already made significant discoveries with the results of Helicos RNA-Seq and are appreciating the benefits of analyzing the transcriptome using the True Single Molecule Sequencing approach, without ligation or amplification. We are excited to now provide our customers with the methods to perform this analysis themselves.” said Steve Lombardi, President of Helicos.

The amplification/ligation-free Helicos RNA-Seq protocol has been released to a limited set of customers and is expected to be commercialized later this year.