Long Life Family Study Taps PacBio HiFi Sequencing to Unlock Genetic and Epigenetic Clues to Exceptional Longevity

Core Insights - PacBio's Revio system will be utilized to sequence up to 7,800 whole genomes and epigenomes as part of the Long Life Family Study (LLFS), one of the largest studies focused on healthy aging to date [1][2] - The LLFS aims to identify factors contributing to healthy aging and longevity, with a significant focus on genomic and epigenomic data [2][8] - The National Institute on Aging has renewed funding for the LLFS with $80 million over five years to support this sequencing initiative [2] Company Overview - PacBio is a leading provider of high-quality long-read sequencing solutions, known for its HiFi long-read technology that delivers highly accurate reads exceeding 15kb [1][5] - The company’s technology is designed to detect structural variants, repeat expansions, and methylation patterns, which are often missed by other sequencing technologies [2][5] - PacBio's Revio system is expected to provide the necessary throughput, cost efficiency, and quality for the LLFS project [2] Study Details - The LLFS has enrolled 5,438 individuals from 539 three-generational pedigrees in the U.S. and Denmark, with nearly 20 years of longitudinal data collection [2][8] - The study will begin sequencing in Q4 2025, starting with approximately 5,500 samples, and aims to complete the full program over five years [2] - The project seeks to identify rare structural variants associated with longevity and link methylation differences to gene regulation and aging [5]