Twist MRD Rapid 500 Panel targets up to 500 genomic regions and provides completely customisable and highly cost-effective panels to detect minimal residual disease (MRD) within five days
MRD Rapid 500 Panel that can be added to a standard NGS workflow. (Credit: Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay)
US-based synthetic biology and genomics company Twist Bioscience has rolled out Twist MRD Rapid 500 Panel that works with a standard next-generation sequencing (NGS) workflow.
The new panel is designed to provide completely customisable and highly cost-effective panels to detect minimal residual disease (MRD) within five days.
MRD testing is a non-invasive method for determining the cancer progression over time, using simple blood draws to track low levels of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) in the blood.
It is used during cancer treatment to determine the presence of any tumour cells remaining and to evaluate the need for an adjustment of the treatment plan.
Also, the testing method can be used to monitor for recurrence of cancer cells in patients after they achieve remission, said the company.
Twist Bioscience CEO and co-founder Emily M Leproust said: “When it comes to monitoring minimal residual disease, which can inform treatment options for patients with cancer, there is no time to waste.
“With the Twist MRD Rapid 500 Panel, we are able to rapidly create custom panels for our research customers, including panels specific to each sample’s unique genetic variance of cancer in as few as five days.
“MRD is becoming the gold standard for monitoring cancer and informing personalized treatments for patients. Through this panel, we facilitate the research and development of our customers in developing new MRD solutions that clinicians can use to benefit their patients.”
Twist MRD Rapid 500 Panel leverages Twist’s existing protocols for target enrichment, which enables simultaneous usage with its established whole-exome NGS workflows.
Incorporated into a standard NGS workflow, the new panel deploys hybrid capture technology to sequence-specific regions that may provide disease insights.
The technology is said to offer a wider coverage than PCR or amplicon sequencing methods, with improved sequencing sensitivity and expanded utility.
Twist said that the new test panel enables its customers to develop personalised MRD tests that can be used in different ways for patients with cancer.
The company first receives the customer’s targets of interest, identified through sequencing specific tumour cells, and then designs the probe sequence in a single day.
Subsequently, it manufactures and ships the panel within five business days, which cuts down the waiting period generally associated with custom products.
Recently, Twist Bioscience rolled out Twist Human Methylome Panel to help detect methylation fractions in a wide range of applications.