BOL

The DAGchainer software computes chains of syntenic genes found within complete genome sequences. As input, DAGchainer accepts a list of gene pairs with sequence homology along with their genome coordinates. Using a scoring function which accounts for the distance between neighboring genes on each DNA molecule and the BLAST E-value score between homologs, maximally scoring chains of ordered gene pairs are computed and reported. This algorithm can be used to mine large evolutionary conserved regions of genomes between two organisms. Alternatively, by examining colinear sets of homologous genes found within a single genome, segmental genome duplications can be revealed.

This software distribution includes both the DAGchainer utility and a Java-based graphical interface that allows the inputs and outputs to be navigated and interrogated dynamically.