China FDA Approves Two Chinese Sequencers, NIPT Kit

July 3, 2014 | The China Food & Drug Administration approved two sequencers from BGI--the BGISEQ-1000 and BGISEQ-100--and a diagnostic kit for prenatal testing of "high risk" pregnancies. The kit offers non-invasive prenatal screening for genetic diseases such as Down syndrome, Patau syndrome, and Edwards syndrome. The test may be prohibitively expensive for much of the mainland Chinese population. At 2,500 yuan, it costs half of an average month's salary. Hospitals also still need to apply for permissions and set up training programs before the tests can be used. South China Morning Post