Get your data faster: GIFS at USask introduces AVITI short-read sequencing services

Apr 17, 2025

The Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) is now providing short-read sequencing services utilizing the AVITI sequencer from Element Biosciences.

The AVITI is the latest addition to GIFS’ comprehensive suite of short- and long-read sequencing technologies.

Utilizing AVITI, GIFS’ team delivers cost-effective, highly accurate data — supported by automated bioinformatics and visualizations pipelines — with faster turnaround times.

The AVITI is suitable for a wide range of applications, from small-scale projects to those demanding high-throughput sequencing workflows. Today, GIFS is supporting whole-genome sequencing, RNA-seq, genotyping, and single-cell sequencing on the instrument.

AVITI features:

Compatible with library preparations designed for other short-read technologies, including Illumina.
Flexible read lengths: Up to 2×300 bp reads.
Avidity sequencing (sequencing by binding chemistry) delivers high quality data: Most bases will have a Q-score of 40 or greater — or less than one error in 10,000 bases.

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Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?