New Technology for Students in the Integrated Science Complex

Dr. Arnab Sengupta, Assistant Professor of Biology, and his students returned from spring break excited to set up the Illumina iSeq next-generation sequencer in the Integrated Science Complex. Students, Alexandra Furney, Brittany Benner, Jin Yeong Kim, and Jonathan Hoffman, came in on a Sunday to help unpack and set up the new sequencer. This instrument boosts the department's capacity to conduct cutting-edge biotechnology research entirely in-house.

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) reads individual building blocks that make a DNA molecule. NGS has a number of different applications and will be utilized by multiple labs in the department. Hands-on training in NGS sample preparation, instrument operation, and data analysis will provide highly impactful training to our students, preparing them for advanced research and rewarding careers in the biotechnology industry and biomedical sciences. The easy-to-operate iSeq 100 system will be incorporated into teaching courses such as Molecular Biotechniques, providing hands-on NGS training to a large number of students.

This technology directly impacts the mentored undergraduate research projects of several students in the various labs in the department, including the groups of Drs. Sengupta, Andrei Barkovskii, and Bruce Snyder as well as faculty and students affiliated with the GCSU Aquatic Sciences Center.

The department's prior acquisition of the Agilent TapeStation – an automated electrophoresis system for sample quality control of DNA and RNA samples - paved the way for our students to use this instrument effectively. Institutional research support from the College of Arts & Sciences, Academic Affairs, GC Journeys mini-grants and the department have enabled our students to have prepared samples ready to run on this technology right away.