An Overview of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) Technologies to Study the Molecular Diversity of Genome

Sequencing is a process used for determining the array of biopolymers applicable in identifying microbial gene arrangements, phenotypes, evolutionary biology, metagenomics, potential drug targets, gene cloning, etc. Commercial sequencers are emerging all around the globe due to rapid development of recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology. For sequencing DNA, next-generation sequencing (NGS) methods provide faster, inexpensive, accurate sequencing of polymers than traditional approaches. The concept of NGS is not quite new; it started in the mid-late 1990s with the successful introduction of methods thereafter, namely, Roche 454 pyrosequencing, Illumina sequencing, SOLiD sequencing, etc. In this book chapter, we briefly elaborate on the above-stated methods and its advantages and disadvantages. Furthermore, we will be discussing the sequencing methods that are under development in the biological research.