NEB Unveils Tools to Reshape Genomic Research at AGBT 2026

IPSWICH, MA – February 20, 2026 – As the world’s leading genomic scientists and technology innovators gather in Orlando for the annual Advances in Genome Biology and Technology (AGBT) Meeting, New England Biolabs (NEB) is set to make a significant impact with a suite of new technologies designed to overcome critical bottlenecks in Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). The company’s announcements focus on the foundational, yet often challenging, step of sample preparation, promising to enhance the accuracy, efficiency, and scope of genomic research across diverse fields.

With a prominent role as a Bronze Meeting Sponsor, the Ipswich-based biotechnology firm will showcase major updates to its flagship NEBNext® product portfolio. The new offerings address some of the most pressing needs in the field, including improved solutions for long-read sequencing, unbiased small RNA analysis, advanced enzymatic methyl sequencing, and scalable cell-free DNA (cfDNA) extraction for liquid biopsy applications. These innovations underscore a strategic effort to empower researchers by refining the very starting materials that fuel genomic discovery.

A New Toolkit for Long-Read and Small RNA Sequencing

At the forefront of NEB’s AGBT presentation is the launch of NEBNext UltraShear® Long Read, a novel enzymatic solution poised to streamline a crucial step in long-read sequencing workflows. Traditionally, fragmenting large strands of genomic DNA into the optimal size for long-read platforms from PacBio or Oxford Nanopore required expensive mechanical shearing devices that could be harsh on precious samples. NEB’s enzymatic approach offers a more controlled, time-tunable method to generate fragments between 2 and 30 kilobases. More importantly, the gentle enzymatic process preserves native DNA methylation marks, a critical advantage that allows researchers to study epigenetic modifications and genetic sequence from the same molecule, a feat difficult to achieve with mechanical methods.

Another major highlight is the company's focus on the notoriously difficult world of small RNA sequencing. NEB will present data on its recently released NEBNext Low-bias Small RNA Library Prep Kit. Small RNAs, such as microRNAs (miRNAs), play a vital role in gene regulation, but their analysis has long been plagued by ligation bias during library preparation, which can skew results and mask the true biological diversity. NEB’s kit tackles this head-on with a proprietary splint adaptor technology that significantly reduces bias. Internal data suggests the kit keeps 90% of sequences within a two-fold range of their expected abundance, a dramatic improvement over competitor kits. Combined with a rapid, single-day, gel-free workflow, this innovation promises to provide a more accurate and sensitive snapshot of the small RNA landscape, potentially unlocking new biomarkers and therapeutic targets.

Advancing Epigenetics and Liquid Biopsy Frontiers

Beyond sequencing library preparation, NEB is also pushing the boundaries of epigenetics and clinical diagnostics. The company continues to champion its Enzymatic Methyl-seq (EM-seq) technology as a superior alternative to traditional bisulfite sequencing. While bisulfite treatment has been the gold standard for methylation analysis, it is known to cause significant DNA damage and degradation, making it unsuitable for low-input or already-damaged samples like those from FFPE tissues or cfDNA. EM-seq uses a series of enzymes to achieve the same end—differentiating methylated from unmethylated cytosines—but without the harsh chemical treatment. The result is higher quality data, greater library complexity, and more complete coverage of the methylome, even from challenging samples. This advantage will be highlighted in a workshop led by Dr. Bernard Lam of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, who will present a cross-platform evaluation of whole methylome sequencing in research and clinical specimens.

Complementing its epigenetics portfolio is the new Monarch® Mag Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) Extraction Kit. The field of liquid biopsy, which analyzes cfDNA from blood and other biofluids for non-invasive disease detection and monitoring, is one of the fastest-growing areas in diagnostics. However, extracting the tiny, fragmented cfDNA from complex biological fluids is a major technical challenge. The Monarch kit is designed for scalable and reproducible isolation of high-purity cfDNA, efficiently capturing fragments as small as 50 base pairs. Its compatibility with both manual and automated workflows makes it a powerful tool for research labs and high-throughput clinical settings aiming to unlock the diagnostic potential of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and other biomarkers.

A Strategic Push in a Competitive Genomics Market

NEB's announcements at AGBT are not happening in a vacuum. They represent a calculated move in the highly competitive NGS sample preparation market, a sector projected to grow from approximately $3.5 billion in 2023 to over $9.6 billion by 2030. While larger players like Illumina and Roche dominate the sequencing hardware space, NEB has strategically carved out a vital niche by focusing on creating high-performance reagents and kits that enable the entire ecosystem.

By developing solutions that solve persistent technical problems—like fragmentation for long-reads, bias in small RNA-seq, and DNA damage in methylation studies—NEB reinforces its reputation as an innovator and a scientist-focused company. This strategy allows it to compete effectively by providing best-in-class tools that generate better data, which is the ultimate currency in research. The focus on automation-friendly and streamlined workflows also directly addresses the market's demand for greater efficiency and scalability as genomics moves increasingly into clinical applications.

"We're excited for this year's meeting," stated Keerthana Krishnan, Ph.D., Associate Director of NGS Product Development at NEB, in the company's press release. "AGBT offers a unique opportunity to showcase our technology developments, as well as engage on a scientist-to-scientist level with the individuals pushing the boundaries of what is possible with sequencing technologies." This sentiment captures the company's core strategy: building tools for scientists, by scientists. The collective impact of these new products is to lower the barrier to entry for advanced genomic techniques, enabling more labs to ask and answer more complex biological questions. By refining the crucial first steps of the sequencing workflow, New England Biolabs is helping to ensure that the revolutionary promise of genomics is built upon a foundation of the highest possible quality.