Metagenomic or Shotgun Sequencing

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking a vendor to provide metagenomic data generated from shallow shotgun sequencing of complex gut microbial samples. The vendor will receive extracted DNA from bacterial pellets and perform metagenomic sequencing using the Illumina pipeline. The contract will be for a period of one year, and the vendor will have 45 days to finish the sequencing and transfer the data files after receiving the samples. The contract will be a firm-fixed price contract, and the award will be made to the offeror representing the best value to the Government. • The contract will require the vendor to generate a DNA library, perform shallow sequencing, and transfer raw data files to the USDA. • The vendor will also be required to provide quality control of the DNA library and raw sequencing reads. • The contract will include two shipments of samples, with a total of 310 samples. • The vendor will be required to provide a detailed protocol for the sequencing and QC data upon request.