This protocol allows massively parallel sequencing of up to 2,304 samples (gDNA or amplicons) on a single flow cell. It uses both the PCR Barcoding Expansion 1-96 (EXP-PBC096) and the Native Barcoding Expansions 1-12 and 13-24 (EXP-NBD104 and EXP-NBD114). First, up to 96 barcodes are added to the DNA ends with PCR. Up to 24 pools of 96 samples can then have a secondary barcode added through the ligation of one of 24 native barcodes. All primary pools can then be combined into a single library and sequenced.

Steps in the sequencing workflow:

Prepare for your experiment

You will need to:

• Extract your DNA, and check its length, quantity and purity. The quality checks performed during the protocol are essential in ensuring experimental success.
• Ensure you have your sequencing kit, the correct equipment and third-party reagents
• Download the software for acquiring and analysing your data
• Check your flow cell to ensure it has enough pores for a good sequencing run

Library preparation

You will need to:

• Prepare the DNA ends for adapter attachment
• Attach barcoding adapters supplied in the 96 PCR Barcoding kit to the DNA ends
• Amplify each barcoded sample by PCR, then pool the samples together
• Prepare the DNA ends for native barcode attachment
• Ligate native barcodes to the DNA ends
• Attach sequencing adapters supplied in the kit to the DNA ends
• Prime the flow cell, and load your DNA library into the flow cell

Sequencing and analysis

You will need to:

• Start a sequencing run using the MinKNOW software, which will collect raw data from the device and convert it into basecalled reads
• Use the Guppy software to split the reads by barcode

Below is the full list of our native barcode (NB01-96) sequences. The first 24 unique barcodes are available in the Native Barcoding Kit 24 V14 (SQK-NBD114.24). The Native Barcoding Kit 96 V14 (SQK-NBD114.96) include the first 24 native barcodes, with the additional 72 unique barcodes. The native barcodes are shipped at 640 nM.

In addition to the barcodes, there are also flanking sequences which add an extra level of context during analysis.

Barcode flanking sequences:

Forward sequence: 5' - AAGGTTAA - barcode - CAGCACCT - 3' Reverse sequence: 5' - GGTGCTG - barcode - TTAACCTTAGCAAT - 3'

Native barcode sequences

Component	Forward sequence	Reverse sequence
NB01	CACAAAGACACCGACAACTTTCTT	AAGAAAGTTGTCGGTGTCTTTGTG
NB02	ACAGACGACTACAAACGGAATCGA	TCGATTCCGTTTGTAGTCGTCTGT
NB03	CCTGGTAACTGGGACACAAGACTC	GAGTCTTGTGTCCCAGTTACCAGG
NB04	TAGGGAAACACGATAGAATCCGAA	TTCGGATTCTATCGTGTTTCCCTA
NB05	AAGGTTACACAAACCCTGGACAAG	CTTGTCCAGGGTTTGTGTAACCTT
NB06	GACTACTTTCTGCCTTTGCGAGAA	TTCTCGCAAAGGCAGAAAGTAGTC
NB07	AAGGATTCATTCCCACGGTAACAC	GTGTTACCGTGGGAATGAATCCTT
NB08	ACGTAACTTGGTTTGTTCCCTGAA	TTCAGGGAACAAACCAAGTTACGT
NB09	AACCAAGACTCGCTGTGCCTAGTT	AACTAGGCACAGCGAGTCTTGGTT
NB10	GAGAGGACAAAGGTTTCAACGCTT	AAGCGTTGAAACCTTTGTCCTCTC
NB11	TCCATTCCCTCCGATAGATGAAAC	GTTTCATCTATCGGAGGGAATGGA
NB12	TCCGATTCTGCTTCTTTCTACCTG	CAGGTAGAAAGAAGCAGAATCGGA
NB13	AGAACGACTTCCATACTCGTGTGA	TCACACGAGTATGGAAGTCGTTCT
NB14	AACGAGTCTCTTGGGACCCATAGA	TCTATGGGTCCCAAGAGACTCGTT
NB15	AGGTCTACCTCGCTAACACCACTG	CAGTGGTGTTAGCGAGGTAGACCT
NB16	CGTCAACTGACAGTGGTTCGTACT	AGTACGAACCACTGTCAGTTGACG
NB17	ACCCTCCAGGAAAGTACCTCTGAT	ATCAGAGGTACTTTCCTGGAGGGT
NB18	CCAAACCCAACAACCTAGATAGGC	GCCTATCTAGGTTGTTGGGTTTGG
NB19	GTTCCTCGTGCAGTGTCAAGAGAT	ATCTCTTGACACTGCACGAGGAAC
NB20	TTGCGTCCTGTTACGAGAACTCAT	ATGAGTTCTCGTAACAGGACGCAA
NB21	GAGCCTCTCATTGTCCGTTCTCTA	TAGAGAACGGACAATGAGAGGCTC
NB22	ACCACTGCCATGTATCAAAGTACG	CGTACTTTGATACATGGCAGTGGT
NB23	CTTACTACCCAGTGAACCTCCTCG	CGAGGAGGTTCACTGGGTAGTAAG
NB24	GCATAGTTCTGCATGATGGGTTAG	CTAACCCATCATGCAGAACTATGC
NB25	GTAAGTTGGGTATGCAACGCAATG	CATTGCGTTGCATACCCAACTTAC
NB26	CATACAGCGACTACGCATTCTCAT	ATGAGAATGCGTAGTCGCTGTATG
NB27	CGACGGTTAGATTCACCTCTTACA	TGTAAGAGGTGAATCTAACCGTCG
NB28	TGAAACCTAAGAAGGCACCGTATC	GATACGGTGCCTTCTTAGGTTTCA
NB29	CTAGACACCTTGGGTTGACAGACC	GGTCTGTCAACCCAAGGTGTCTAG
NB30	TCAGTGAGGATCTACTTCGACCCA	TGGGTCGAAGTAGATCCTCACTGA
NB31	TGCGTACAGCAATCAGTTACATTG	CAATGTAACTGATTGCTGTACGCA
NB32	CCAGTAGAAGTCCGACAACGTCAT	ATGACGTTGTCGGACTTCTACTGG
NB33	CAGACTTGGTACGGTTGGGTAACT	AGTTACCCAACCGTACCAAGTCTG
NB34	GGACGAAGAACTCAAGTCAAAGGC	GCCTTTGACTTGAGTTCTTCGTCC
NB35	CTACTTACGAAGCTGAGGGACTGC	GCAGTCCCTCAGCTTCGTAAGTAG
NB36	ATGTCCCAGTTAGAGGAGGAAACA	TGTTTCCTCCTCTAACTGGGACAT
NB37	GCTTGCGATTGATGCTTAGTATCA	TGATACTAAGCATCAATCGCAAGC
NB38	ACCACAGGAGGACGATACAGAGAA	TTCTCTGTATCGTCCTCCTGTGGT
NB39	CCACAGTGTCAACTAGAGCCTCTC	GAGAGGCTCTAGTTGACACTGTGG
NB40	TAGTTTGGATGACCAAGGATAGCC	GGCTATCCTTGGTCATCCAAACTA
NB41	GGAGTTCGTCCAGAGAAGTACACG	CGTGTACTTCTCTGGACGAACTCC
NB42	CTACGTGTAAGGCATACCTGCCAG	CTGGCAGGTATGCCTTACACGTAG
NB43	CTTTCGTTGTTGACTCGACGGTAG	CTACCGTCGAGTCAACAACGAAAG
NB44	AGTAGAAAGGGTTCCTTCCCACTC	GAGTGGGAAGGAACCCTTTCTACT
NB45	GATCCAACAGAGATGCCTTCAGTG	CACTGAAGGCATCTCTGTTGGATC
NB46	GCTGTGTTCCACTTCATTCTCCTG	CAGGAGAATGAAGTGGAACACAGC
NB47	GTGCAACTTTCCCACAGGTAGTTC	GAACTACCTGTGGGAAAGTTGCAC
NB48	CATCTGGAACGTGGTACACCTGTA	TACAGGTGTACCACGTTCCAGATG
NB49	ACTGGTGCAGCTTTGAACATCTAG	CTAGATGTTCAAAGCTGCACCAGT
NB50	ATGGACTTTGGTAACTTCCTGCGT	ACGCAGGAAGTTACCAAAGTCCAT
NB51	GTTGAATGAGCCTACTGGGTCCTC	GAGGACCCAGTAGGCTCATTCAAC
NB52	TGAGAGACAAGATTGTTCGTGGAC	GTCCACGAACAATCTTGTCTCTCA
NB53	AGATTCAGACCGTCTCATGCAAAG	CTTTGCATGAGACGGTCTGAATCT
NB54	CAAGAGCTTTGACTAAGGAGCATG	CATGCTCCTTAGTCAAAGCTCTTG
NB55	TGGAAGATGAGACCCTGATCTACG	CGTAGATCAGGGTCTCATCTTCCA
NB56	TCACTACTCAACAGGTGGCATGAA	TTCATGCCACCTGTTGAGTAGTGA
NB57	GCTAGGTCAATCTCCTTCGGAAGT	ACTTCCGAAGGAGATTGACCTAGC
NB58	CAGGTTACTCCTCCGTGAGTCTGA	TCAGACTCACGGAGGAGTAACCTG
NB59	TCAATCAAGAAGGGAAAGCAAGGT	ACCTTGCTTTCCCTTCTTGATTGA
NB60	CATGTTCAACCAAGGCTTCTATGG	CCATAGAAGCCTTGGTTGAACATG
NB61	AGAGGGTACTATGTGCCTCAGCAC	GTGCTGAGGCACATAGTACCCTCT
NB62	CACCCACACTTACTTCAGGACGTA	TACGTCCTGAAGTAAGTGTGGGTG
NB63	TTCTGAAGTTCCTGGGTCTTGAAC	GTTCAAGACCCAGGAACTTCAGAA
NB64	GACAGACACCGTTCATCGACTTTC	GAAAGTCGATGAACGGTGTCTGTC
NB65	TTCTCAGTCTTCCTCCAGACAAGG	CCTTGTCTGGAGGAAGACTGAGAA
NB66	CCGATCCTTGTGGCTTCTAACTTC	GAAGTTAGAAGCCACAAGGATCGG
NB67	GTTTGTCATACTCGTGTGCTCACC	GGTGAGCACACGAGTATGACAAAC
NB68	GAATCTAAGCAAACACGAAGGTGG	CCACCTTCGTGTTTGCTTAGATTC
NB69	TACAGTCCGAGCCTCATGTGATCT	AGATCACATGAGGCTCGGACTGTA
NB70	ACCGAGATCCTACGAATGGAGTGT	ACACTCCATTCGTAGGATCTCGGT
NB71	CCTGGGAGCATCAGGTAGTAACAG	CTGTTACTACCTGATGCTCCCAGG
NB72	TAGCTGACTGTCTTCCATACCGAC	GTCGGTATGGAAGACAGTCAGCTA
NB73	AAGAAACAGGATGACAGAACCCTC	GAGGGTTCTGTCATCCTGTTTCTT
NB74	TACAAGCATCCCAACACTTCCACT	AGTGGAAGTGTTGGGATGCTTGTA
NB75	GACCATTGTGATGAACCCTGTTGT	ACAACAGGGTTCATCACAATGGTC
NB76	ATGCTTGTTACATCAACCCTGGAC	GTCCAGGGTTGATGTAACAAGCAT
NB77	CGACCTGTTTCTCAGGGATACAAC	GTTGTATCCCTGAGAAACAGGTCG
NB78	AACAACCGAACCTTTGAATCAGAA	TTCTGATTCAAAGGTTCGGTTGTT
NB79	TCTCGGAGATAGTTCTCACTGCTG	CAGCAGTGAGAACTATCTCCGAGA
NB80	CGGATGAACATAGGATAGCGATTC	GAATCGCTATCCTATGTTCATCCG
NB81	CCTCATCTTGTGAAGTTGTTTCGG	CCGAAACAACTTCACAAGATGAGG
NB82	ACGGTATGTCGAGTTCCAGGACTA	TAGTCCTGGAACTCGACATACCGT
NB83	TGGCTTGATCTAGGTAAGGTCGAA	TTCGACCTTACCTAGATCAAGCCA
NB84	GTAGTGGACCTAGAACCTGTGCCA	TGGCACAGGTTCTAGGTCCACTAC
NB85	AACGGAGGAGTTAGTTGGATGATC	GATCATCCAACTAACTCCTCCGTT
NB86	AGGTGATCCCAACAAGCGTAAGTA	TACTTACGCTTGTTGGGATCACCT
NB87	TACATGCTCCTGTTGTTAGGGAGG	CCTCCCTAACAACAGGAGCATGTA
NB88	TCTTCTACTACCGATCCGAAGCAG	CTGCTTCGGATCGGTAGTAGAAGA
NB89	ACAGCATCAATGTTTGGCTAGTTG	CAACTAGCCAAACATTGATGCTGT
NB90	GATGTAGAGGGTACGGTTTGAGGC	GCCTCAAACCGTACCCTCTACATC
NB91	GGCTCCATAGGAACTCACGCTACT	AGTAGCGTGAGTTCCTATGGAGCC
NB92	TTGTGAGTGGAAAGATACAGGACC	GGTCCTGTATCTTTCCACTCACAA
NB93	AGTTTCCATCACTTCAGACTTGGG	CCCAAGTCTGAAGTGATGGAAACT
NB94	GATTGTCCTCAAACTGCCACCTAC	GTAGGTGGCAGTTTGAGGACAATC
NB95	CCTGTCTGGAAGAAGAATGGACTT	AAGTCCATTCTTCTTCCAGACAGG
NB96	CTGAACGGTCATAGAGTCCACCAT	ATGGTGGACTCTATGACCGTTCAG

• 1 µg (or 100-200 fmol) gDNA is required for R9.4.1 flow cells
• 1.5-3 µg (or 150-300 fmol) gDNA is required for R10.3 flow cells

How to QC your input DNA

It is important that the input DNA meets the quantity and quality requirements. Using too little or too much DNA, or DNA of poor quality (e.g. highly fragmented or containing RNA or chemical contaminants) can affect your library preparation.

For instructions on how to perform quality control of your DNA sample, please read the Input DNA/RNA QC protocol.

Chemical contaminants

Depending on how the DNA is extracted from the raw sample, certain chemical contaminants may remain in the purified DNA, which can affect library preparation efficiency and sequencing quality. Read more about contaminants on the Contaminants page of the Community.

The kit allows up to 96 different libraries to be combined; each of these libraries will be barcoded with one of the 96 PCR barcodes (BC1-BC96). These libraries can then be barcoded for the second time with a native barcode from the Native Barcoding Expansions.

The reagents are divided between two 96 tube plates. One plate (blue caps) contains barcode adapters that are ligated to the DNA. All tubes in this plate have identical content. The other plate (white caps) contains the barcodes, one barcode per tube.

| Name | No. of plates | Fill volume per well (µl) | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | PCR Primer mix | 1 | 24 | | Barcode adapter plate | 1 | 240 |

The wells of the 96 tube plate correspond to the barcodes in the following way. All barcodes are supplied at 10 µM concentration and to be used at a final concentration of 0.2 µM.

EXP-NBD104 kit contents

Name	Acronym	Cap colour	No. of vials	Fill volume per vial (μl)
Native Barcode 01-12	NB01-12	White	12	20
Adapter Mix II	AMII	Green	1	40

**EXP-NBD114 kit contents** 

Name	Acronym	Cap colour	No. of vials	Fill volume per vial (μl)
Native Barcode 13-24	NB13-24	White	12	20
Adapter Mix II	AMII	Green	1	40

Name	Acronym	Cap colour	No. of vials	Fill volume per vial (µl)
DNA CS	DCS	Yellow	1	50
Adapter Mix	AMX	Green	1	40
Ligation Buffer	LNB	Clear	1	200
L Fragment Buffer	LFB	White cap, orange stripe on label	2	1,800
S Fragment Buffer	SFB	Grey	2	1,800
Sequencing Buffer	SQB	Red	2	300
Elution Buffer	EB	Black	1	200
Loading Beads	LB	Pink	1	360

Name	Acronym	Cap colour	No. of vials	Fill volume per vial (μl)
Flush Buffer	FB	Blue	6	1,170
Flush Tether	FLT	Purple	1	200

Name	Acronym	Cap colour	No. of tubes	Fill volume per vial (μl)
Adapter Mix II	AMII	Green	2	40

Protocols that use the Native Barcoding Expansions require 5 μl of AMII per reaction. Native Barcoding Expansions EXP-NBD104/NBD114 and EXP-NBD196 contain sufficient AMII for 6 and 12 reactions, respectively (or 12 and 24 reactions when sequencing on Flongle). This assumes that all barcodes are used in one sequencing run.

The Adapter Mix II expansion provides additional AMII for customers who are running subsets of barcodes, and allows a further 12 reactions (24 on Flongle).

Sequencing on a MinION Mk1B requires a high-spec computer or laptop to keep up with the rate of data acquisition. For more information, refer to the MinION Mk1B IT requirements document.

MinKNOW

The MinKNOW software controls the nanopore sequencing device, collects sequencing data and basecalls in real time. You will be using MinKNOW for every sequencing experiment to sequence, basecall and demultiplex if your samples were barcoded.

For instructions on how to run the MinKNOW software, please refer to the MinKNOW protocol.

EPI2ME (optional)

The EPI2ME cloud-based platform performs further analysis of basecalled data, for example alignment to the Lambda genome, barcoding, or taxonomic classification. Currently, the FASTQ Barcoding workflow in EPI2ME is not compatible with dual-barcoded reads. EPI2ME installation and use For instructions on how to create an EPI2ME account and install the EPI2ME Desktop Agent, please refer to the EPI2ME Platform protocol.

We highly recommend that you check the number of pores in your flow cell prior to starting a sequencing experiment. This should be done within 12 weeks of purchasing for MinION/GridION/PromethION or within four weeks of purchasing Flongle Flow Cells. Oxford Nanopore Technologies will replace any flow cell with fewer than the number of pores in the table below, when the result is reported within two days of performing the flow cell check, and when the storage recommendations have been followed. To do the flow cell check, please follow the instructions in the Flow Cell Check document.

Flow cell	Minimum number of active pores covered by warranty
Flongle Flow Cell	50
MinION/GridION Flow Cell	800
PromethION Flow Cell	5000

The wells of the 96 tube plate correspond to the barcodes in the following way. All barcodes are supplied at 10 µM concentration and to be used at a final concentration of 0.2 µM.

Protocols that use the Native Barcoding Expansions require 5 μl of AMII per reaction. Native Barcoding Expansions EXP-NBD104/NBD114 and EXP-NBD196 contain sufficient AMII for 6 and 12 reactions, respectively (or 12 and 24 reactions when sequencing on Flongle). This assumes that all barcodes are used in one sequencing run.

The Adapter Mix II expansion provides additional AMII for customers who are running subsets of barcodes, and allows a further 12 reactions (24 on Flongle).

For a full overview of nanopore data analysis, which includes options for basecalling and post-basecalling analysis, please refer to the Data Analysis document.

The sequencing device control, data acquisition and real-time basecalling are carried out by the MinKNOW software. Please ensure MinKNOW is installed on your computer or device. There are multiple options for how to carry out sequencing:

1. Data acquisition and basecalling in real-time using MinKNOW on a computer

Follow the instructions in the MinKNOW protocol beginning from the "Starting a sequencing run" section until the end of the "Completing a MinKNOW run" section.

2. Data acquisition and basecalling in real-time using the MinION Mk1B/Mk1D device

Follow the instructions in the MinION Mk1B user manual or the MinION Mk1D user manual.

3. Data acquisition and basecalling in real-time using the MinION Mk1C device

Follow the instructions in the MinION Mk1C user manual.

4. Data acquisition and basecalling in real-time using the GridION device

Follow the instructions in the GridION user manual.

5. Data acquisition and basecalling in real-time using the PromethION device

Follow the instructions in the PromethION user manual or the PromethION 2 Solo user manual.

6. Data acquisition using MinKNOW on a computer and basecalling at a later time using MinKNOW

Follow the instructions in the MinKNOW protocol beginning from the "Starting a sequencing run" section until the end of the "Completing a MinKNOW run" section. When setting your experiment parameters, set the Basecalling tab to OFF. After the sequencing experiment has completed, follow the instructions in the Post-run analysis section of the MinKNOW protocol.

To demultiplex your reads by barcode, use the dual barcoding configuration file, specifying the barcode kit as "EXP-DUAL00":

guppy_barcoder --input_path <folder containing FASTQ and/or FASTA files> --save_path <output folder> --config configuration_dual.cfg --barcode_kits "EXP-DUAL00"

For more information and instructions on how to use Guppy, please refer to the relevant sections of the protocol: Barcode demultiplexing Quick Start

1. EPI2ME platform

The EPI2ME platform is a cloud-based data analysis service developed by Metrichor Ltd., a subsidiary of Oxford Nanopore Technologies. The EPI2ME platform offers a range of analysis workflows, e.g. for metagenomic identification, barcoding, alignment, and structural variant calling. The analysis requires no additional equipment or compute power, and provides an easy-to-interpret report with the results. For instructions on how to run an analysis workflow in EPI2ME, please follow the instructions in the EPI2ME protocol, beginning at the "Starting an EPI2ME workflow" step. Please note that the FASTQ Barcoding workflow in EPI2ME is currently not compatible with dual-barcoded reads.

2. Bioinformatics tutorials

For more in-depth data analysis, Oxford Nanopore Technologies offers a range of bioinformatics tutorials, which are available in the Bioinformatics resource section of the Community. The tutorials take the user through installing and running pre-built analysis pipelines, which generate a report with the results. The tutorials are aimed at biologists who would like to analyse data without the help of a dedicated bioinformatician, and who are comfortable using the command line.

3. Research analysis tools

Oxford Nanopore Technologies' Research division has created a number of analysis tools, which are available in the Oxford Nanopore GitHub repository. The tools are aimed at advanced users, and contain instructions for how to install and run the software. They are provided as-is, with minimal support.

4. Community-developed analysis tools

If a data analysis method for your research question is not provided in any of the resources above, please refer to the Community-developed data analysis tool library. Numerous members of the Nanopore Community have developed their own tools and pipelines for analysing nanopore sequencing data, most of which are available on GitHub. Please be aware that these tools are not supported by Oxford Nanopore Technologies, and are not guaranteed to be compatible with the latest chemistry/software configuration.

We also have an FAQ section available on the Nanopore Community Support section.

If you have tried our suggested solutions and the issue still persists, please contact Technical Support via email (support@nanoporetech.com) or via LiveChat in the Nanopore Community.

We also have an FAQ section available on the Nanopore Community Support section.

If you have tried our suggested solutions and the issue still persists, please contact Technical Support via email (support@nanoporetech.com) or via LiveChat in the Nanopore Community.