Illumina (company)

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Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN) has developed a targeted set of instruments and chips for organizations conducting larger-scale research in genotyping and gene expression profiling.

Illumina announced the acquisition of Solexa (the company responsible for Solexa sequencing technology) on November 13, 2006, the deal completed on January 26, 2007.

In February 2008, Illumina said it had sequenced a human genome in a matter of weeks. The system used for the sequencing combined Solexa sequencing with reversible terminator chemistry.

Illumina's relative success can be attributed in part to a confluence of major scientific advancements outside the company, such as the mapping of the human genome and studies of which variations on the genome are medically significant.

The company provides three major technologies for analyzing the genome: genotyping, gene sequencing and gene expression profiling.

Illumina has also developed a high-density biochip assay with more than two million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for analysis of the large amount of data created by their genome analyzer system.