Whole-Genome Sequencing of SARS-CoV-2: Assessment of the Ion Torrent AmpliSeq Panel and Comparison with the Illumina MiSeq ARTIC Protocol
Jonathan Plitnick, Sara Griesemer, Erica Lasek-Nesselquist, Navjot Singh, Daryl M. Lamson, Kirsten St. George
Abstract
Fast and effective methods are needed for sequencing of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genome to track genetic mutations and to identify new and emerging variants during the ongoing pandemic. The objectives were to assess the performance of the SARS-CoV-2 AmpliSeq research panel and S5 plug-in analysis tools for whole-genome sequencing analysis of SARS-CoV-2 and to compare the results with those obtained with the MiSeq-based ARTIC analysis pipeline, using metrics such as depth, coverage, and concordance of single-nucleotide variant (SNV) calls. A total of 191 clinical specimens and a single cultured isolate were extracted and sequenced with AmpliSeq technology and analysis tools.