Illumina, Inc.  (NASDAQ:ILMN) today announced it has expanded the rights of use for the HiSeq X Sequencing System to allow customers to perform whole-genome sequencing of non-human species. The updated rights of use will take effect immediately for existing customers of the HiSeq X Ten and HiSeq X Five, and will apply to all new customers of the sequencing systems. 

Driven by the world's first $1,000 human genome and significant demand for population-scale sequencing, more than 125,000 human whole-genome samples have been sequenced on the platform since its release in January 2014 . The updated rights of use will allow for market expansion and population-scale sequencing of non-human species in a variety of markets, including plants and livestock in agricultural research and model organisms in pharmaceutical research. Previously, it has been cost prohibitive to sequence non-human genomes at high coverage. 

"The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is excited to be able to sequence non-human genomes on the HiSeq X Platform," said Emma Millican, Director of Scientific Operations. "Understanding the genetics and biological processes of non-human organisms is a major area of focus for the Sanger Institute and this update will enable large-scale whole-genome sequencing projects, important for public health, that otherwise would not have happened. The Sanger Institute plans to extend whole-genome population sequencing to many more medically relevant organisms in the future." 

"Market adoption of the HiSeq X system for population-scale studies has exceeded our expectations and we are excited for new and existing customers to take their research to new heights," said Francis deSouza, President of Illumina . "With its ultrahigh throughput and unprecedented price point per genome, the HiSeq X system now provides customers with an opportunity to reshape the economics and scale of whole-genome sequencing beyond the human species."