Alliance of Genome Resources Portal: unified model organism research platform

The Alliance of Genome Resources (Alliance) is a consortium of the major model organism databases and the Gene Ontology that is guided by the vision of facilitating exploration of related genes in human and well-studied model organisms by providing a highly integrated and comprehensive platform that enables researchers to leverage the extensive body of genetic and genomic studies in these organisms. Initiated in 2016, the Alliance is building a central portal (www.alliancegenome.org) for access to data for the primary model organisms along with gene ontology data and human data. All data types represented in the Alliance portal (e.g. genomic data and phenotype descriptions) have common data models and workflows for curation. All data are open and freely available via a variety of mechanisms. Long-term plans for the Alliance project include a focus on coverage of additional model organisms including those without dedicated curation communities, and the inclusion of new data types with a particular focus on providing data and tools for the non-model-organism researcher that support enhanced discovery about human health and disease. Here we review current progress and present immediate plans for this new bioinformatics resource

Alliance of Genome Resources Portal: unified model organism research platform

The Alliance of Genome Resources (Alliance) is a consortium of the major model organism databases and the Gene Ontology that is guided by the vision of facilitating exploration of related genes in human and well-studied model organisms by providing a highly integrated and comprehensive platform that enables researchers to leverage the extensive body of genetic and genomic studies in these organisms. Initiated in 2016, the Alliance is building a central portal (www.alliancegenome.org) for access to data for the primary model organisms along with gene ontology data and human data. All data types represented in the Alliance portal (e.g. genomic data and phenotype descriptions) have common data models and workflows for curation. All data are open and freely available via a variety of mechanisms. Long-term plans for the Alliance project include a focus on coverage of additional model organisms including those without dedicated curation communities, and the inclusion of new data types with a particular focus on providing data and tools for the non-model-organism researcher that support enhanced discovery about human health and disease. Here we review current progress and present immediate plans for this new bioinformatics resource

Performance of Horse Gram [Macrotyloma uniflorum (L.) Verdc] Germplasm for Seed Yield and Its Component Characters

The present investigation was carried out with 78 diverse horse gram [Macrotyloma uniflorum (L.) Verdc] genotypes along with 4 checks during the late Kharif season. Data was recorded on days to 50 percent flowering, days to maturity, plant height, number of branches per plant, pod length, number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plant, pod weight (g), seed yield per plant (g), and 100-seed weight (g). Analysis of variance revealed significant differences among all the genotypes for all the characters studied. A wide range of variations had been observed for all the characters except for the number of seeds per pod. The highest coefficient of variation was observed in the number of pods per plant followed by 100 seed weight and seed yield per plant. The phenotypic coefficients of variation (PCV) were higher than the genotypic coefficient of variation (GCV) for all the traits but the differences were narrow. The highest magnitude of PCV and GCV were recorded for seed yield per plant (g) followed by pod weight (g) indicating a wide range of variation which provides a chance for yield improvement. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance was observed for plant height, number of branches per plant, number of pods per plant, pod weight, seed yield per plant, and 100 seed weight indicating additive gene action and the abundant scope for improvement in these traits through simple selection. This study provides information about the performance of the genotypes and identifies some prominent genotypes. Thirty-three genotypes recorded significantly higher seed yield per plant as compared to the best-performing check. These genotypes were IC 426292, IC 470167, IC 426471, IC 470229, IC 470206, IC 470262, IC 426464, IC 107247, IC 108076, IC 426550, IC 426540, IC 108078, IC 426537, IC 470166, IC 467865, CRHG-1, IC 426539, IC 426478, IC 426524, IC 426549, IC 426522, IC 470170, IC 261278, IC 470188, IC 426535, IC 107222, IC 226533, IC 426574, IC 426523, IC 526965, IC 426571, IC 426517 and IC 426538. These genotypes may be further used for parental selection in breeding programs for the improvement of yield and its attributes in horse gram

Metagenomic Analysis of Regularly Microwave-Treated and Untreated Domestic Kitchen Sponges

Kitchen sponges massively absorb and spread microorganisms, leading to contamination of kitchen appliances, surfaces, and food. Microwaving as an effective and widespread technique can rapidly reduce the microbial load of kitchen sponges. However, long-term effects of such treatments are largely unknown. Notably, it has been speculated that regularly applied domestic cleaning and disinfection may select for microbial communities with a higher pathogenic potential and/or malodorous properties. In this study, we distributed newly purchased polyurethane kitchen sponges to 20 participants, with the instruction to use them under normal household conditions for four weeks. Ten of the participants sanitized their sponges regularly by a standardized microwaving protocol, while the remaining ten sponges remained untreated. Metagenomic sequence data evaluation indicated that, in addition to bacteria, viruses, eukaryotes, and archaea were also part of the kitchen sponge microbiome. Comparisons of sanitized and untreated kitchen sponges indicated a trend towards a reduced structural microbial diversity while functional diversity increased. Microwave sanitization appeared to alter composition and metabolic properties of the microbial communities. Follow-up studies will have to show whether these changes are more positive or negative in terms of domestic hygiene, human health, and well-being.</p

Exploring human disease using the Rat Genome Database

Rattus norvegicus, the laboratory rat, has been a crucial model for studies of the environmental and genetic factors associated with human diseases for over 150 years. It is the primary model organism for toxicology and pharmacology studies, and has features that make it the model of choice in many complex-disease studies. Since 1999, the Rat Genome Database (RGD; http://rgd.mcw.edu) has been the premier resource for genomic, genetic, phenotype and strain data for the laboratory rat. The primary role of RGD is to curate rat data and validate orthologous relationships with human and mouse genes, and make these data available for incorporation into other major databases such as NCBI, Ensembl and UniProt. RGD also provides official nomenclature for rat genes, quantitative trait loci, strains and genetic markers, as well as unique identifiers. The RGD team adds enormous value to these basic data elements through functional and disease annotations, the analysis and visual presentation of pathways, and the integration of phenotype measurement data for strains used as disease models. Because much of the rat research community focuses on understanding human diseases, RGD provides a number of datasets and software tools that allow users to easily explore and make disease-related connections among these datasets. RGD also provides comprehensive human and mouse data for comparative purposes, illustrating the value of the rat in translational research. This article introduces RGD and its suite of tools and datasets to researchers – within and beyond the rat community – who are particularly interested in leveraging rat-based insights to understand human diseases

Exploring human disease using the Rat Genome Database

Rattus norvegicus, the laboratory rat, has been a crucial model for studies of the environmental and genetic factors associated with human diseases for over 150 years. It is the primary model organism for toxicology and pharmacology studies, and has features that make it the model of choice in many complex-disease studies. Since 1999, the Rat Genome Database (RGD; http://rgd.mcw.edu) has been the premier resource for genomic, genetic, phenotype and strain data for the laboratory rat. The primary role of RGD is to curate rat data and validate orthologous relationships with human and mouse genes, and make these data available for incorporation into other major databases such as NCBI, Ensembl and UniProt. RGD also provides official nomenclature for rat genes, quantitative trait loci, strains and genetic markers, as well as unique identifiers. The RGD team adds enormous value to these basic data elements through functional and disease annotations, the analysis and visual presentation of pathways, and the integration of phenotype measurement data for strains used as disease models. Because much of the rat research community focuses on understanding human diseases, RGD provides a number of datasets and software tools that allow users to easily explore and make disease-related connections among these datasets. RGD also provides comprehensive human and mouse data for comparative purposes, illustrating the value of the rat in translational research. This article introduces RGD and its suite of tools and datasets to researchers – within and beyond the rat community – who are particularly interested in leveraging rat-based insights to understand human diseases