Roche unveils its breakthrough proprietary SBX technology

Roche (RHHBY) unveiled its proprietary, breakthrough sequencing by expansion technology, establishing a new category of next-generation sequencing. SBX chemistry, combined with an innovative sensor module, offers ultra-rapid, high-throughput sequencing that is both flexible and scalable for a broad range of applications. Next-generation sequencing provides detailed insights into genetics, genomics and cell biology. It has already improved our understanding of gene functions and interaction, and is critical to our ability to decode complex diseases such cancer, immune disorders, and neurodegenerative conditions, where hundreds or even thousands of genes impact disease progression. “The science behind SBX technology represents a significant breakthrough that addresses the limitations of existing sequencing solutions,” states Matt Sause, CEO of Roche Diagnostics. “By integrating and enhancing the two technologies, Roche’s SBX has created a differentiated approach, offering unparalleled speed, efficiency and flexibility. The speed and accuracy of SBX has the potential to revolutionise the use of sequencing in research and healthcare.” SBX is a novel sequencing approach which uses a sophisticated biochemical process to encode the sequence of a target nucleic acid molecule into a measurable surrogate polymer called an Xpandomer. Xpandomers, which are fifty times longer than the original molecule, encode the sequence information into high signal-to-noise reporters, meaning they provide clear signals with minimal background noise. This enables highly accurate single-molecule nanopore sequencing using a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor-based sensor module with parallel processing capabilities, offering speed and flexibility beyond that of other sequencing technologies.