Customer Support

Yes, absolutely. We understand that every client has unique requirements, which is why we provide fully customized solutions. Our team works closely with you to assess your goals, challenges, and expectations, then develops a tailored approach that best fits your project. We adapt our expertise to deliver solutions that align perfectly with your needs.

Our long-read sequencing platforms generate entire plasmid or amplicon sequences in a single run—without requiring primers—eliminating the need for primer-walking and avoiding issues with GC-rich or repetitive regions. The read lengths vastly exceed ~750 bp typical of Sanger, allowing seamless coverage of full plasmid backbones and inserts in one pass.

At SmartLife Biosciences, we offer long-read sequencing services designed to handle a wide variety of biological samples, including:

• Plasmids and synthetic constructs – ideal for validating cloning results, detecting structural variations, and confirming sequence integrity.

• PCR amplicons and long targets – enabling accurate characterization of complex or repetitive regions that are difficult to resolve with short-read methods.

• Microbial genomes (bacterial, fungal, or yeast) – from complete de novo assemblies to strain identification and comparative genomics.

• Metagenomic and microbiome samples – for studying complex communities and detecting low-abundance species with higher resolution.

• Custom projects – including synthetic libraries, gene editing validation (CRISPR/Cas), viral genomes, or other challenging DNA/RNA molecules requiring full-length sequencing.

Our expertise allows us to adapt workflows to specific research questions, whether you are working with simple plasmids or highly complex biological systems.

Sequencing different types of samples requires appropriate preparation. You will find our recommendations in the description of each product or on our recommendations page 

We provide datas which can be easily seen and analysed on free software.

• To analyze and visualize CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing results : CRISPResso 2

• To view, align and assemble long reads, short reads and Sanger reads : UGENE
• To view Sanger chromatogram : CHROMASEQ
• To View, annotate & share all type of reads : SNAGENE VIEWER
• To view reads alignment on a reference : TABLET

Routine long-read sequencing of plasmids and PCR amplicons is delivered within 24 hours after the samples are received in our laboratory. This ensures that researchers can quickly validate cloning, verify constructs, or check amplicon integrity without delay.

For more complex or custom projects—such as microbial genomes, metagenomic samples, or synthetic libraries—turnaround times may vary depending on sample type and project scope, but we always strive to provide results as efficiently as possible.

For our routine long-read sequencing services of plasmids and PCR amplicons, a sample is considered failed if we cannot produce a reliable consensus sequence with at least 10× coverage.

This definition does not apply to bacterial genomes or fully customized projects. For those, we first run an establishment phase protocol, during which the feasibility of the project is evaluated at an early milestone. If our expert team confirms feasibility—or if the customer chooses to proceed while accepting the risk of potential failure—the project will move forward.

Because of the exploratory nature of these advanced projects, the standard failure policy does not apply to bacterial genomes and custom sequencing projects.

Although sequencing failures are rare, they can occasionally occur due to the biological nature of the samples. The most frequent causes are:

1- Incorrect DNA concentration – If the DNA is not prepared at the required concentration, sequencing efficiency drops significantly. This is usually visible as low read counts in the raw read length histogram. In such cases, blasting the consensus is not recommended, as background noise may exceed the true sequencing signal.
We strongly recommend using a Qubit (or equivalent) for accurate DNA quantification. Please avoid using a Nanodrop, as it often produces biased measurements.

2- Mixed or fragmented DNA – If a sample contains a mixture of plasmid species, fragmented genomic DNA, or fragmented plasmids, it typically produces a wide distribution of read lengths in the raw read length histogram, which complicates assembly and consensus generation.

By ensuring high-quality, correctly quantified DNA and avoiding contamination or fragmentation, you can greatly reduce the risk of sequencing failure.