Robust data you can trust
For most researchers, robustness shows up over time, when a technology produces consistent results day in, day out across tricky sample types and growing datasets. It’s about being able to trust the workflows even when inputs aren’t perfect or conditions aren’t predictable.
When data generation is robust, confidence follows. Researchers don’t have to second-guess whether a result reflects underlying biology or technical variability. Instead, they can rely on their sequencing data to be consistent and reproducible, freeing them to move faster and make decisions backed by evidence they trust.
In this Real Talk with Researchers blog, we hear from scientists using our technology in demanding research environments, sharing how consistent, reliable data generation has become a given — allowing them to focus on the questions that matter most.
Martin Wendlandt: analysing large datasets with confidence
For researchers at the Medical Genetics Center (MGZ) in Munich (Germany), Martin notes that Oxford Nanopore technology gives them all the data they require — in one go. Their method provides accurate sequencing data at scale, meaning the team can spend less time at the bench and more time analysing what the data is telling them.
Lucia Clemens-Daxinger: delivering robust data for powerful insights
Lucia uses nanopore sequencing to study DNA methylation and histone modifications as part of her developmental epigenetics research. Our technology provides methylation information at single-nucleotide resolution, allowing Lucia to get robust data she can rely on.
‘Oxford Nanopore gets us the information that we need’
Lucia Clemens-Daxinger, Leiden University Medical Center (Netherlands)
Nate Edisis: a reliable base for rare disease research
On the long journey to characterise rare diseases, samples aren’t always fresh and researchers often have to work with whatever material is available. At Boston Children’s Hospital (USA), Nate finds that nanopore sequencing is reliable on old samples as well as new. That consistency matters when you’re trying to piece together answers to questions that have been unsolved for years, and could one day help end the diagnostic odysseys faced by patients and families.
Barnaby Clark: multidimensional insights from a single assay
Nanopore sequencing shows potential to replace the 'battery of tests’ currently used for clinical testing at King’s College Hospital (UK), according to Barnaby. Our technology provides the team with data on methylation, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), copy number variation, and fusion calling — in one go. Seeing these multiple layers of information at once opens the door to rapid tumour classification, and, in the future, more targeted treatment decisions.
‘To be able to get all of that from a single assay is almost the holy grail of what we’re after’
Barnaby Clark, King’s College Hospital (UK)
Mike Hubank: rapid delivery of results you can trust
The NHS is often challenged by long turnaround times and budget constraints, and The Royal Marsden Hospital (UK) is no exception. Mike explains that nanopore sequencing shows clear potential to help address these pressures. Getting the right results faster could eliminate the need for further downstream interventions, saving the NHS time and money, and ultimately improving patient outcomes in the future.
Alimat Oyawoye and Tilda Tierney: high-quality data from low-quality samples
As part of the NIHR BioResource 22,000 genomes project, Alimat and Tilda needed to find a sequencing protocol they could trust to be reproducible across multiple sample types and different sites. Nanopore sequencing provides them with robust datasets that are comparable between labs, even from low-quality saliva samples.
‘The main thing I’ve found with nanopore versus other sequencing platforms is the robustness of it, and the quality of DNA that can go into library prep and then produce good data’
Tilda Tierney, Kings College London (UK)
Curious to learn more? Find out how you can gain accurate, multidimensional insights — in one go.
If you enjoyed this blog, check out another in our Real Talk with Researchers series: scalability without compromise
Frequently asked questions
How can I detect methylation in my data?
For the highest accuracy canonical base and methylation calls from a single run, we recommend using the basecaller Dorado, which delivers gold-standard methylation calling alongside canonical basecalling, with minimal impact to basecalling speed. Dorado is integrated into MinKNOW — the software onboard nanopore sequencing devices — enabling live basecalling; it can also be used as a standalone tool. We recommend using the high accuracy (HAC) basecalling model. Using Dorado in HAC mode on a PromethION 24 device, live methylation calling can be performed in real-time in all positions concurrently.
For a deeper analysis of variants within the human genome, we recommend the workflow wf-human-variation. As well as providing methylation annotations and enabling haplotype phasing, this workflow — an EPI2ME™ solution — allows for the analysis of SNVs, CNVs, SVs, and STRs. The workflow can be run with simple, point-and-click implementation, or via the command line.
How much data do I need?
For good metrics in human genome-wide calling of 5mC and 5hmC methylation, we recommend sequencing to 20x depth of coverage; this was the read depth used in our Oxford Nanopore methylation calling performance benchmarking dataset.
To phase your data, we recommend increasing read depth to around 30x. These depths can be achieved by sequencing on one PromethION Flow Cell for 72 hours. Long and ultra-long, native nanopore reads allow for easy and accurate phasing of data, with uniform coverage enabling haplotype-resolved methylation calling across large regions of interest.
Oxford Nanopore Technologies products are not intended for use for health assessment or to diagnose, treat, mitigate, cure, or prevent any disease or condition.
