Now, sequence your genome for $1k

Washington, Jan 16 (ANI): Genome sequencing was once the realm of big institutions with loads of money, but a company is changing that.

The company called Ion Torrent has developed a device that will help sequence your genome for about 1,000 dollars in just one day.

The gene-sequencing device called the Ion Proton was introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Discovery News reported.

The machine itself isn't cheap, coming in at about 149,000 dollars.

The company also sells another model, called the Ion Personal Genome Machine, which costs about 50,000 dollars.

But the Proton has a lot more computing power and can sequence genes much faster than the less expensive model because it uses a lab-on-a-chip system - a technology based on semiconductors.

The computing power is key, however, as it allows the Ion Proton to sequence a person's entire genome for about the same price as some medical tests.

To put it in perspective, the cost of an MRI without any insurance would run from 500 dollars to 3,500.

The Ion Proton can also sequence exons, the protein-encoding regions of the genome where most disease-causing mutations happen. (ANI)