BOL: Related items

Basic Notions in Molecular Biology and Genetics

Antony Campos — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 18:15:29 -0500

This is a presentation about some fundamental concepts applied in molecular biology and genetics, also it contains a little bit of the experience that one of our members has gained in his years of undergraduate state related to molecular cloning. Our research group, called "BIOPHARM" (Acronymus of Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Pharmacogenetics), was stablished on 2007, took it a bit of years to make it real this initative, although, nowadays, we're working on some projects involved in those fields. This research group belongs to the Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima, Perú. We try to encourage research initiatives, helping them and also we use to participate in differents courses, congress and symposiums.

QuasR: Quantification and annotation of short reads in R

Neel — Fri, 13 Aug 2021 07:44:05 -0500

The QuasR package (short for Quantify and annotate short reads in R) integrates the functionality of several R packages (such as IRanges (Lawrence et al. 2013) and Rsamtools) and external software (e.g. bowtie, through the Rbowtie package, and HISAT2, through the Rhisat2 package). The package aims to cover the whole analysis workflow of typical high throughput sequencing experiments, starting from the raw sequence reads, over pre-processing and alignment, up to quantification. A single R script can contain all steps of a complete analysis, making it simple to document, reproduce or share the workflow containing all relevant details.

Address of the bookmark: https://www.bioconductor.org/packages/devel/bioc/vignettes/QuasR/inst/doc/QuasR.html

Gerstein Lab

Wed, 19 Mar 2014 12:48:20 -0500

The focus of the Gerstein Lab is interpreting personal genomes, particularly in relation to disorders, such as cancer. This endeavor has a number of related aspects described below. Moreover, the approaches we take have broad connections to a variety of data-intensive fields, within the emerging discipline of data science.

Personal Genome Variation: SVs
Human Genome Annotation: Processing Next-Gen Sequencing Data
Comparative Genomics: Pseudogenes as Molecular Fossils
Protein Structure and Function: Macromolecular Motions
Analysis of Diverse Networks
Genomics at the Forefront of Data Science

Lab page: http://www.gersteinlab.org/

Basics of BLAST Programs !

BioStar — Fri, 26 Jul 2024 06:04:26 -0500

The Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (BLAST) is a powerful bioinformatics program used to compare an input sequence (such as DNA, RNA, or protein sequences) against a database of sequences to find regions of similarity. Developed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), BLAST is widely used for identifying species, finding functional and evolutionary relationships between sequences, and predicting the function of novel sequences.

Key Features of BLAST:
1. Sequence Comparison: BLAST searches for local alignments between the query sequence and sequences in a database. It identifies regions of similarity, which can help infer functional and evolutionary relationships.

2. Speed and Efficiency: BLAST uses heuristic algorithms, making it faster than exhaustive search methods, suitable for large-scale database searches.

3. Versatility: There are several versions of BLAST for different types of sequence comparisons:
- blastn: Compares a nucleotide query sequence against a nucleotide sequence database.
- blastp: Compares a protein query sequence against a protein sequence database.
- blastx: Compares a nucleotide query sequence translated in all reading frames against a protein sequence database.
- tblastn: Compares a protein query sequence against a nucleotide sequence database translated in all reading frames.
- tblastx: Compares the six-frame translations of a nucleotide query sequence against the six-frame translations of a nucleotide sequence database.

4. Scoring and E-value: BLAST results are scored based on the quality and length of the alignments. The E-value (expect value) indicates the number of alignments one can expect to find by chance, with lower E-values representing more significant matches.

5. Output Formats: BLAST provides results in various formats, including plain text, HTML, XML, and JSON, making it adaptable for different types of analyses and integrations with other tools.

Applications of BLAST:
- Genomic Research: Identifying genes, understanding genetic diversity, and mapping genome sequences.
- Protein Function Prediction: Inferring the function of unknown proteins by comparing them to known protein sequences.
- Evolutionary Studies: Exploring evolutionary relationships between organisms by comparing their genetic material.
- Medical Research: Identifying pathogens, understanding disease mechanisms, and developing treatments by comparing sequences of interest.

Overall, BLAST is an essential tool in bioinformatics, offering a reliable and efficient way to analyze and interpret biological sequence data.

Bioinformatics PhD at University of Calcutta

Mon, 31 Mar 2014 08:41:04 -0500

University of Calcutta
Department of Biophysics, Molecular Biology & Bioinformatics

Applications are invited for admission to the Ph.D. programme in the Department of Biophysics, Molecular Biology & Bioinformatics, University of Calcutta for the year 2014 from eligible candidates who would be placed under the departmental teachers or affiliated research supervisors for the pursuance of their Ph.D. programme.

Candidates are requested to download the Ph.D. admission test application form from the University website and apply in the prescribed proforma by paying Rs. 100/- through a challan available through different University Cash counters. The challan is to be duly forwarded through the Head, Department of Biophysics, Molecular Biology & Bioinformatics, University of Calcutta.

The completed application form with a copy of the paid challan is to be submitted to the office of the Department by April 16, 2014.

Syllabus for the Test: The questions for the admission test and interview will be based on topics in the following areas:

Mathematical methods, Molecular and Cellular Biophysics, Molecular and Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Genetics, Plant Biology, Developmental biology, Neurobiology, Biotechnology and Bioinformatics.

However, the interview will be primarily based on the research emphasis of the candidate. Candidates must clearly indicate the program in which they want to apply.

Date of Admission test : April 22, 2014 (Tuesday)

Date of publication of selection list for the interview : April 22, 2014(Tuesday)

Date of Interview : April 23, 2014 (Wednesday)

Number of vacancies for the Ph.D. programme : 12

Reservation policy will be followed as per rules.

Candidates with valid NET/GATE/M.Phil. or equivalent qualifications are not required to appear at the admission test but would need to qualify in the interview.

http://www.caluniv.ac.in/admission%20notice/PHD_BIO_PHYSICS.pdf

The Gene Detectives: How a New Computational Tool Is Helping Us Read the History Written in Our Genes

BioStar — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 21:23:42 -0500

Imagine opening an ancient family album with no names, dates, or captions. Some photographs are missing, others have been copied, and a few show people who look almost identical. Your challenge is to discover who is related to whom and reconstruct the family story. In evolutionary biology, scientists face a similar mystery when they study genes. Every genome contains clues about its past, but genes can be duplicated, lost, and changed over millions of years, making their history difficult to trace.

A recent study published in PLOS Computational Biology introduces REvolutionH-tl 2.0 (https://pypi.org/project/revolutionhtl/), a computational tool designed to help solve this mystery. The software analyzes protein sequences and identifies evolutionary relationships between genes. It can help researchers detect important events such as gene duplication, gene loss, and speciation, allowing them to reconstruct how genes evolved across different organisms.

What makes the tool especially interesting is its focus on both speed and interpretation. The researchers compared REvolutionH-tl 2.0 with several existing computational tools and reported that it achieved competitive accuracy while requiring less computational time in their tests. The tool also includes visualization features, helping researchers turn complicated genetic data into evolutionary stories that are easier to explore.

Genes are more than simple sequences of DNA; they are records of life’s long history. Each surviving gene carries traces of the changes that shaped it. By bringing together computational analysis and visualization, REvolutionH-tl 2.0 acts like a detective, helping scientists uncover these hidden stories. Ultimately, tools like this can improve our understanding of how genomes evolved and how genes acquired the roles they perform today.

More at https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013017

Phylogenomics/Phylogenetic website

Aaryan Lokwani — Mon, 07 Apr 2014 02:17:18 -0500

Welcome to phylobabble.org, a discussion forum for phylogenetic theory and applications. The primary goal of this forum is to discuss best practice and new developments in phylogenetics. Although we do have a Troubleshooting category for getting feedback on analyses, this is not a help site for running phylogenetics programs.

A great place to chat about phylogenetics for researchers and the broader community of students and science-interested citizens.

Address of the bookmark: http://phylobabble.org/

Circleator

Jit — Sun, 25 Jun 2017 18:04:32 -0500

The Charm City Circleator--or Circleator for short--is a Perl-based visualization tool developed at the Institute for Genome Sciences in the University of Maryland's School of Medicine. Circleator produces circular plots of genome-associated data, like this one:

Common uses of the tool include:

Displaying the sequence and/or genes in a GenBank flat file.
Highlighting differences and/or similarities in gene content between related organisms.
Comparing SNPs and indels between closely-related strains or serovars.
Comparing gene expression values across multiple samples or timepoints.
Visualizing coverage plots of RNA-Seq read alignments.

Key Features

Circleator...

Builds on BioPerl and the input file formats that it supports, including:
- GenBank flat files, GFF, FASTA
Accepts a number of other commonly-used datatypes and file formats:
- BSR and TRF output, SAM/BAM files, VCF-encoded SNPs, tab-delimited files
Outputs publication-ready figures in the SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) format.
Requires only a single configuration file whose layout mirrors that of the figure itself.
- Predefined configuration files and "track" types are supplied for common datasets.
- Advanced features allow limited analyses to be performed as a figure is drawn.
Includes an extensive set of regression tests.
Offers a prototype web-based GUI (under the "Ringmaster" project.)

https://github.com/jonathancrabtree/Circleator

Address of the bookmark: https://github.com/jonathancrabtree/Circleator

CHSMiner: a GUI tool to identify chromosomal homologous segments

Jit — Sat, 18 Nov 2017 16:55:49 -0600

Background

The identification of chromosomal homologous segments (CHS) within and between genomes is essential for comparative genomics. Various processes including insertion/deletion and inversion could cause the degeneration of CHSs.

Results

Here we present a Java software CHSMiner that detects CHSs based on shared gene content alone. It implements fast greedy search algorithm and rigorous statistical validation, and its friendly graphical interface allows interactive visualization of the results. We tested the software on both simulated and biological realistic data and compared its performance with similar existing software and data source.

Conclusion

CHSMiner is characterized by its integrated workflow, fast speed and convenient usage. It will be useful for both experimentalists and bioinformaticians interested in the structure and evolution of genomes.

https://github.com/zhenwang100/CHSMiner

Address of the bookmark: https://almob.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1748-7188-4-2

BioCodes/BioScripts

Jit — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 20:53:33 -0500

Over the years most bioinformatics people amass a collection of small utility scripts which make their lives easier. Too often they are kept either in private repositories or as part of a public collection to which noone else can contribute. Biocode is a curated repository of general-use utility scripts.

Algorithms scripts @ https://github.com/jschendel/bioinformatics-algorithms-coursera

Address of the bookmark: https://github.com/jorvis/biocode