| 1. |
- Bradnam, K. R., et al.
(författare)
-
Assemblathon 2 : Evaluating de novo methods of genome assembly in three vertebrate species
- 2013
-
Ingår i: GigaScience. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 2047-217X. ; 2:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: The process of generating raw genome sequence data continues to become cheaper, faster, and more accurate. However, assembly of such data into high-quality, finished genome sequences remains challenging. Many genome assembly tools are available, but they differ greatly in terms of their performance (speed, scalability, hardware requirements, acceptance of newer read technologies) and in their final output (composition of assembled sequence). More importantly, it remains largely unclear how to best assess the quality of assembled genome sequences. The Assemblathon competitions are intended to assess current state-of-the-art methods in genome assembly. Results: In Assemblathon 2, we provided a variety of sequence data to be assembled for three vertebrate species (a bird, a fish, and snake). This resulted in a total of 43 submitted assemblies from 21 participating teams. We evaluated these assemblies using a combination of optical map data, Fosmid sequences, and several statistical methods. From over 100 different metrics, we chose ten key measures by which to assess the overall quality of the assemblies. Conclusions: Many current genome assemblers produced useful assemblies, containing a significant representation of their genes and overall genome structure. However, the high degree of variability between the entries suggests that there is still much room for improvement in the field of genome assembly and that approaches which work well in assembling the genome of one species may not necessarily work well for another.
|
|
| 2. |
- Imanishi, T., et al.
(författare)
-
Integrative annotation of 21,037 human genes validated by full-length cDNA clones
- 2004
-
Ingår i: PLoS biology. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1544-9173 .- 1545-7885. ; 2:6, s. 856-875
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The human genome sequence defines our inherent biological potential; the realization of the biology encoded therein requires knowledge of the function of each gene. Currently, our knowledge in this area is still limited. Several lines of investigation have been used to elucidate the structure and function of the genes in the human genome. Even so, gene prediction remains a difficult task, as the varieties of transcripts of a gene may vary to a great extent. We thus performed an exhaustive integrative characterization of 41,118 full-length cDNAs that capture the gene transcripts as complete functional cassettes, providing an unequivocal report of structural and functional diversity at the gene level. Our international collaboration has validated 21,037 human gene candidates by analysis of high-quality full-length cDNA clones through curation using unified criteria. This led to the identification of 5,155 new gene candidates. It also manifested the most reliable way to control the quality of the cDNA clones. We have developed a human gene database, called the H-Invitational Database (H-InvDB; http://www.h-invitational.jp/). It provides the following: integrative annotation of human genes, description of gene structures, details of novel alternative splicing isoforms, non-protein-coding RNAs, functional domains, subcellular localizations, metabolic pathways, predictions of protein three-dimensional structure, mapping of known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), identification of polymorphic microsatellite repeats within human genes, and comparative results with mouse full-length cDNAs. The H-InvDB analysis has shown that up to 4% of the human genome sequence (National Center for Biotechnology Information build 34 assembly) may contain misassembled or missing regions. We found that 6.5% of the human gene candidates (1,377 loci) did not have a good protein-coding open reading frame, of which 296 loci are strong candidates for non-protein-coding RNA genes. In addition, among 72,027 uniquely mapped SNPs and insertions/deletions localized within human genes, 13,215 nonsynonymous SNPs, 315 nonsense SNPs, and 452 indels occurred in coding regions. Together with 25 polymorphic microsatellite repeats present in coding regions, they may alter protein structure, causing phenotypic effects or resulting in disease. The H-InvDB platform represents a substantial contribution to resources needed for the exploration of human biology and pathology.
|
|
| 3. |
- Lewin, Harris A., et al.
(författare)
-
The Earth BioGenome Project 2020 : Starting the clock
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). - 0027-8424 .- 1091-6490. ; 119:4
-
Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)
|
|
| 4. |
- Cowell, C., et al.
(författare)
-
Uses and benefits of digital sequence information from plant genetic resources: Lessons learnt from botanical collections
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Plants People Planet. - : Wiley. - 2572-2611. ; 4:1, s. 33-43
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Societal Impact Statement Digitized molecular data are vital to numerous aspects of scientific research and genetic resource use. The Convention on Biological Diversity currently refers to this as "Digital Sequence Information" (DSI), a term not widely adopted by science and lacking a clear definition. There are concerns over the access to genetic resources and absence of benefit sharing by provider countries. Open access to DSI might exacerbate this, which is leading to increasing policy interventions and restricted access to genetic resources and DSI. We analyze current international debate and proposed solutions and provide case studies of DSI use producing tangible benefits for the provider countries and scientific research, demonstrating the importance of open access DSI to achieving conservation goals. Substantial advances in DNA sequencing over the last decades hold great potential to enhance food security and sustainable use of global biodiversity, benefiting the world's poorest people. Digital Sequence Information (DSI) plays a crucial role in catalyzing research applications that can contribute to international societal and biodiversity conservation targets. However, benefit sharing relating to DSI is difficult to identify and hindered by the lack of clear international governance and legislation, which in turn has led to a reluctance to make DSI publicly and freely available. Critically, no precise definition exists under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Nagoya Protocol (NP), or the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA). The key difference between DSI and biological resources, for which access and use are highly regulated under those frameworks, is that information is nonphysical. Information can be replicated and used without movement of, or access to, physical specimens. Thus, regulating the use of DSI is extremely challenging and remains controversial. Here, we review the regulation of DSI and the possible future steps by the international community, in the context of the benefit-sharing obligations of the CBD, NP, and ITPGRFA. We highlight how multilateral agreements work in practice and are a solution to this impasse. We provide case studies demonstrating how the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and its collaborators address the uncertainty surrounding the use of DSI, illustrating tangible and equitable benefits that have arisen from such use. We conclude that open access to DSI is needed for scientific research and international policy.
|
|
| 5. |
- Lawniczak, Mara K. N., et al.
(författare)
-
Standards recommendations for the Earth BioGenome Project
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). - 0027-8424 .- 1091-6490. ; 119:4
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A global international initiative, such as the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), requires both agreement and coordination on standards to ensure that the collective effort generates rapid progress toward its goals. To this end, the EBP initiated five technical standards committees comprising volunteer members from the global genomics scientific community: Sample Collection and Processing, Sequencing and Assembly, Annotation, Analysis, and IT and Informatics. The current versions of the resulting standards documents are available on the EBP website, with the recognition that opportunities, technologies, and challenges may improve or change in the future, requiring flexibility for the EBP to meet its goals. Here, we describe some highlights from the proposed standards, and areas where additional challenges will need to be met.
|
|
| 6. |
- Bateman, Alex, et al.
(författare)
-
RNAcentral: A vision for an international database of RNA sequences.
- 2011
-
Ingår i: RNA (New York, N.Y.). - : Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. - 1469-9001 .- 1355-8382. ; 17:11, s. 1941-6
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During the last decade there has been a great increase in the number of noncoding RNA genes identified, including new classes such as microRNAs and piRNAs. There is also a large growth in the amount of experimental characterization of these RNA components. Despite this growth in information, it is still difficult for researchers to access RNA data, because key data resources for noncoding RNAs have not yet been created. The most pressing omission is the lack of a comprehensive RNA sequence database, much like UniProt, which provides a comprehensive set of protein knowledge. In this article we propose the creation of a new open public resource that we term RNAcentral, which will contain a comprehensive collection of RNA sequences and fill an important gap in the provision of biomedical databases. We envision RNA researchers from all over the world joining a federated RNAcentral network, contributing specialized knowledge and databases. RNAcentral would centralize key data that are currently held across a variety of databases, allowing researchers instant access to a single, unified resource. This resource would facilitate the next generation of RNA research and help drive further discoveries, including those that improve food production and human and animal health. We encourage additional RNA database resources and research groups to join this effort. We aim to obtain international network funding to further this endeavor.
|
|
| 7. |
- Marschall, Tobias, et al.
(författare)
-
Computational pan-genomics : status, promises and challenges
- 2018
-
Ingår i: Briefings in Bioinformatics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1467-5463 .- 1477-4054. ; 19:1, s. 118-135
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Many disciplines, from human genetics and oncology to plant breeding, microbiology and virology, commonly face the challenge of analyzing rapidly increasing numbers of genomes. In case of Homo sapiens, the number of sequenced genomes will approach hundreds of thousands in the next few years. Simply scaling up established bioinformatics pipelines will not be sufficient for leveraging the full potential of such rich genomic data sets. Instead, novel, qualitatively different computational methods and paradigms are needed. We will witness the rapid extension of computational pan-genomics, a new sub-area of research in computational biology. In this article, we generalize existing definitions and understand a pan-genome as any collection of genomic sequences to be analyzed jointly or to be used as a reference. We examine already available approaches to construct and use pan-genomes, discuss the potential benefits of future technologies and methodologies and review open challenges from the vantage point of the above-mentioned biological disciplines. As a prominent example for a computational paradigm shift, we particularly highlight the transition from the representation of reference genomes as strings to representations as graphs. We outline how this and other challenges from different application domains translate into common computational problems, point out relevant bioinformatics techniques and identify open problems in computer science. With this review, we aim to increase awareness that a joint approach to computational pan-genomics can help address many of the problems currently faced in various domains.
|
|
| 8. |
- Williams, C., et al.
(författare)
-
Conservation Policy: Helping or hindering science to unlock properties of plants and fungi
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Plants People Planet. - : Wiley. - 2572-2611. ; 2:5, s. 535-545
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Biodiversity loss is happening at an unprecedented rate. Understanding and protecting biodiversity has never been more urgent, and scientific research is key to this. Fair and transparent access and benefit sharing policies enable research to take place, whilst supporting sustainable livelihoods of communities and ensuring benefits are shared. Current national legislation has been unevenly implemented and, in this article, we recommend frameworks be developed to standardize the provision and use of genetic resources for non-commercial research. Summary: Access to genetic resources for scientific research is vital to support and promote the conservation and sustainable use of the world's biodiversity. The regulatory framework for research is stipulated by Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) legislation at a national level, but other elements – legal transparency, respect, cooperation, and trust – are essential for its effective and sustainable implementation. Despite the intention of this “ABS regime” to protect natural resources and associated knowledge from misappropriation, several studies have questioned whether national regulatory approaches have led to constraints on research and conservation. We analyse evidence and provide case studies on how these regulations are affecting research. We find that the number of Internationally Recognized Certificates of Compliance (IRCC) of the Nagoya Protocol (NP), the key compliance mechanism of the ABS system, doubled in the six months prior to February 2020 and analyse why this may be the case. Additionally, a survey of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Authorities in 28 countries, found differences in the way the Registered Scientific Institute scheme is interpreted and used to facilitate scientific research. Our results suggest while the regulatory systems are perceived as hindering research and conservation, regulatory mechanisms enabling responsible research are becoming increasingly functional. We argue that functional and transparent systems are needed for both regulators and researchers, to ensure that non-commercial research can continue smoothly, and present conclusions to support research for the benefit of all countries and partners involved, through appropriate frameworks for implementation and reporting. © 2020 The Authors, Plants, People, Planet © New Phytologist Foundation
|
|
| 9. |
- Shaw, Felix, et al.
(författare)
-
COPO : a metadata platform for brokering FAIR data in the life sciences
- 2020
-
Ingår i: F1000 Research. - : F1000 Research Ltd. - 2046-1402. ; 9
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Scientific innovation is increasingly reliant on data and computational resources. Much of today’s life science research involves generating, processing, and reusing heterogeneous datasets that are growing exponentially in size. Demand for technical experts (data scientists and bioinformaticians) to process these data is at an all-time high, but these are not typically trained in good data management practices. That said, we have come a long way in the last decade, with funders, publishers, and researchers themselves making the case for open, interoperable data as a key component of an open science philosophy. In response, recognition of the FAIR Principles (that data should be Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) has become commonplace. However, both technical and cultural challenges for the implementation of these principles still exist when storing, managing, analysing and disseminating both legacy and new data. COPO is a computational system that attempts to address some of these challenges by enabling scientists to describe their research objects (raw or processed data, publications, samples, images, etc.) using community-sanctioned metadata sets and vocabularies, and then use public or institutional repositories to share them with the wider scientific community. COPO encourages data generators to adhere to appropriate metadata standards when publishing research objects, using semantic terms to add meaning to them and specify relationships between them. This allows data consumers, be they people or machines, to find, aggregate, and analyse data which would otherwise be private or invisible, building upon existing standards to push the state of the art in scientific data dissemination whilst minimising the burden of data publication and sharing.
|
|
