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Ontology annotation: mapping genomic regions to biological function.

With numerous whole genomes now in hand, and experimental data about genes and biological pathways on the increase, a systems approach to biological research is becoming essential. Ontologies provide a formal representation of knowledge that is amenable to computational as well as human analysis, an obvious underpinning of systems biology. Mapping function to gene products in the genome consists of two, somewhat intertwined enterprises: ontology building and ontology annotation. Ontology building is the formal representation of a domain of knowledge; ontology annotation is association of specific genomic regions (which we refer to simply as 'genes', including genes and their regulatory elements and products such as proteins and functional RNAs) to parts of the ontology. We consider two complementary representations of gene function: the Gene Ontology (GO) and pathway ontologies. GO represents function from the gene's eye view, in relation to a large and growing context of biological knowledge at all levels. Pathway ontologies represent function from the point of view of biochemical reactions and interactions, which are ordered into networks and causal cascades. The more mature GO provides an example of ontology annotation: how conclusions from the scientific literature and from evolutionary relationships are converted into formal statements about gene function. Annotations are made using a variety of different types of evidence, which can be used to estimate the relative reliability of different annotations.

Animals↗

Tiling microarray analysis of rice chromosome 10 to identify the transcriptome and relate its expression to chromosomal architecture.

BACKGROUND: Sequencing and annotation of the genome of rice (Oryza sativa) have generated gene models in numbers that top all other fully sequenced species, with many lacking recognizable sequence homology to known genes. Experimental evaluation of these gene models and identification of new models will facilitate rice genome annotation and the application of this knowledge to other more complex cereal genomes. RESULTS: We report here an analysis of the chromosome 10 transcriptome of the two major rice subspecies, japonica and indica, using oligonucleotide tiling microarrays. This analysis detected expression of approximately three-quarters of the gene models without previous experimental evidence in both subspecies. Cloning and sequence analysis of the previously unsupported models suggests that the predicted gene structure of nearly half of those models needs improvement. Coupled with comparative gene model mapping, the tiling microarray analysis identified 549 new models for the japonica chromosome, representing an 18% increase in the annotated protein-coding capacity. Furthermore, an asymmetric distribution of genome elements along the chromosome was found that coincides with the cytological definition of the heterochromatin and euchromatin domains. The heterochromatin domain appears to associate with distinct chromosome level transcriptional activities under normal and stress conditions. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrated the utility of genome tiling microarray in evaluating annotated rice gene models and in identifying novel transcriptional units. The tiling microarray sanalysis further revealed a chromosome-wide transcription pattern that suggests a role for transposable element-enriched heterochromatin in shaping global transcription in response to environmental changes in rice.

Chromosomes, Plant↗

GANESH: software for customized annotation of genome regions.

GANESH is a software package designed to support the genetic analysis of regions of human and other genomes. It provides a set of components that may be assembled to construct a self-updating database of DNA sequence, mapping data, and annotations of possible genome features. Once one or more remote sources of data for the target region have been identified, all sequences for that region are downloaded, assimilated, and subjected to a (configurable) set of standard database-searching and genome-analysis packages. The results are stored in compressed form in a relational database, and are updated automatically on a regular schedule so that they are always immediately available in their most up-to-date versions. A Java front-end, executed as a stand alone application or web applet, provides a graphical interface for navigating the database and for viewing the annotations. There are facilities for importing and exporting data in the format of the Distributed Annotation System (DAS), enabling a GANESH database to be used as a component of a DAS configuration. The system has been used to construct databases for about a dozen regions of human chromosomes and for three regions of mouse chromosomes.

Animals↗

Genome-wide DNA polymorphism analyses using VariScan.

BACKGROUND: DNA sequence polymorphisms analysis can provide valuable information on the evolutionary forces shaping nucleotide variation, and provides an insight into the functional significance of genomic regions. The recent ongoing genome projects will radically improve our capabilities to detect specific genomic regions shaped by natural selection. Current available methods and software, however, are unsatisfactory for such genome-wide analysis. RESULTS: We have developed methods for the analysis of DNA sequence polymorphisms at the genome-wide scale. These methods, which have been tested on a coalescent-simulated and actual data files from mouse and human, have been implemented in the VariScan software package version 2.0. Additionally, we have also incorporated a graphical-user interface. The main features of this software are: i) exhaustive population-genetic analyses including those based on the coalescent theory; ii) analysis adapted to the shallow data generated by the high-throughput genome projects; iii) use of genome annotations to conduct a comprehensive analyses separately for different functional regions; iv) identification of relevant genomic regions by the sliding-window and wavelet-multiresolution approaches; v) visualization of the results integrated with current genome annotations in commonly available genome browsers. CONCLUSION: VariScan is a powerful and flexible suite of software for the analysis of DNA polymorphisms. The current version implements new algorithms, methods, and capabilities, providing an important tool for an exhaustive exploratory analysis of genome-wide DNA polymorphism data.

Algorithms↗

NemaFootPrinter: a web based software for the identification of conserved non-coding genome sequence regions between C. elegans and C. briggsae.

BACKGROUND: NemaFootPrinter (Nematode Transcription Factor Scan Through Philogenetic Footprinting) is a web-based software for interactive identification of conserved, non-exonic DNA segments in the genomes of C. elegans and C. briggsae. It has been implemented according to the following project specifications:a) Automated identification of orthologous gene pairs. b) Interactive selection of the boundaries of the genes to be compared. c) Pairwise sequence comparison with a range of different methods. d) Identification of putative transcription factor binding sites on conserved, non-exonic DNA segments. RESULTS: Starting from a C. elegans or C. briggsae gene name or identifier, the software identifies the putative ortholog (if any), based on information derived from public nematode genome annotation databases. The investigator can then retrieve the genome DNA sequences of the two orthologous genes; visualize graphically the genes' intron/exon structure and the surrounding DNA regions; select, through an interactive graphical user interface, subsequences of the two gene regions. Using a bioinformatics toolbox (Blast2seq, Dotmatcher, Ssearch and connection to the rVista database) the investigator is able at the end of the procedure to identify and analyze significant sequences similarities, detecting the presence of transcription factor binding sites corresponding to the conserved segments. The software automatically masks exons. DISCUSSION: This software is intended as a practical and intuitive tool for the researchers interested in the identification of non-exonic conserved sequence segments between C. elegans and C. briggsae. These sequences may contain regulatory transcriptional elements since they are conserved between two related, but rapidly evolving genomes. This software also highlights the power of genome annotation databases when they are conceived as an open resource and the possibilities offered by seamless integration of different web services via the http protocol. AVAILABILITY: The program is freely available at http://bio.ifom-firc.it/NTFootPrinter.

Animals↗

Functional demonstration of reverse transsulfuration in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex reveals that methionine is the preferred sulfur source for pathogenic Mycobacteria.

Methionine can be used as the sole sulfur source by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex although it is not obvious from examination of the genome annotation how these bacteria utilize methionine. Given that genome annotation is a largely predictive process, key challenges are to validate these predictions and to fill in gaps for known functions for which genes have not been annotated. We have addressed these issues by functional analysis of methionine metabolism. Transport, followed by metabolism of (35)S methionine into the cysteine adduct mycothiol, demonstrated the conversion of exogenous methionine to cysteine. Mutational analysis and cloning of the Rv1079 gene showed it to encode the key enzyme required for this conversion, cystathionine gamma-lyase (CGL). Rv1079, annotated metB, was predicted to encode cystathionine gamma-synthase (CGS), but demonstration of a gamma-elimination reaction with cystathionine as well as the gamma-replacement reaction yielding cystathionine showed it encodes a bifunctional CGL/CGS enzyme. Consistent with this, a Rv1079 mutant could not incorporate sulfur from methionine into cysteine, while a cysA mutant lacking sulfate transport and a methionine auxotroph was hypersensitive to the CGL inhibitor propargylglycine. Thus, reverse transsulfuration alone, without any sulfur recycling reactions, allows M. tuberculosis to use methionine as the sole sulfur source. Intracellular cysteine was undetectable so only the CGL reaction occurs in intact mycobacteria. Cysteine desulfhydrase, an activity we showed to be separable from CGL/CGS, may have a role in removing excess cysteine and could explain the ability of M. tuberculosis to recycle sulfur from cysteine, but not methionine.

Alkynes↗

Pathway confirmation and flux analysis of central metabolic pathways in Desulfovibrio vulgaris hildenborough using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry.

Flux distribution in central metabolic pathways of Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough was examined using 13C tracer experiments. Consistent with the current genome annotation and independent evidence from enzyme activity assays, the isotopomer results from both gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) indicate the lack of an oxidatively functional tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and an incomplete pentose phosphate pathway. Results from this study suggest that fluxes through both pathways are limited to biosynthesis. The data also indicate that >80% of the lactate was converted to acetate and that the reactions involved are the primary route of energy production [NAD(P)H and ATP production]. Independently of the TCA cycle, direct cleavage of acetyl coenzyme A to CO and 5,10-methyl tetrahydrofuran also leads to production of NADH and ATP. Although the genome annotation implicates a ferredoxin-dependent oxoglutarate synthase, isotopic evidence does not support flux through this reaction in either the oxidative or the reductive mode; therefore, the TCA cycle is incomplete. FT-ICR MS was used to locate the labeled carbon distribution in aspartate and glutamate and confirmed the presence of an atypical enzyme for citrate formation suggested in previous reports [the citrate synthesized by this enzyme is the isotopic antipode of the citrate synthesized by the (S)-citrate synthase]. These findings enable a better understanding of the relation between genome annotation and actual metabolic pathways in D. vulgaris and also demonstrate that FT-ICR MS is a powerful tool for isotopomer analysis, overcoming the problems with both GC-MS and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Acetyl Coenzyme A↗

GeneViTo: visualizing gene-product functional and structural features in genomic datasets.

BACKGROUND: The availability of increasing amounts of sequence data from completely sequenced genomes boosts the development of new computational methods for automated genome annotation and comparative genomics. Therefore, there is a need for tools that facilitate the visualization of raw data and results produced by bioinformatics analysis, providing new means for interactive genome exploration. Visual inspection can be used as a basis to assess the quality of various analysis algorithms and to aid in-depth genomic studies. RESULTS: GeneViTo is a JAVA-based computer application that serves as a workbench for genome-wide analysis through visual interaction. The application deals with various experimental information concerning both DNA and protein sequences (derived from public sequence databases or proprietary data sources) and meta-data obtained by various prediction algorithms, classification schemes or user-defined features. Interaction with a Graphical User Interface (GUI) allows easy extraction of genomic and proteomic data referring to the sequence itself, sequence features, or general structural and functional features. Emphasis is laid on the potential comparison between annotation and prediction data in order to offer a supplement to the provided information, especially in cases of "poor" annotation, or an evaluation of available predictions. Moreover, desired information can be output in high quality JPEG image files for further elaboration and scientific use. A compilation of properly formatted GeneViTo input data for demonstration is available to interested readers for two completely sequenced prokaryotes, Chlamydia trachomatis and Methanococcus jannaschii. CONCLUSIONS: GeneViTo offers an inspectional view of genomic functional elements, concerning data stemming both from database annotation and analysis tools for an overall analysis of existing genomes. The application is compatible with Linux or Windows ME-2000-XP operating systems, provided that the appropriate Java Runtime Environment is already installed in the system.

Bacterial Proton-Translocating ATPases↗

A comprehensive transcript index of the human genome generated using microarrays and computational approaches.

BACKGROUND: Computational and microarray-based experimental approaches were used to generate a comprehensive transcript index for the human genome. Oligonucleotide probes designed from approximately 50,000 known and predicted transcript sequences from the human genome were used to survey transcription from a diverse set of 60 tissues and cell lines using ink-jet microarrays. Further, expression activity over at least six conditions was more generally assessed using genomic tiling arrays consisting of probes tiled through a repeat-masked version of the genomic sequence making up chromosomes 20 and 22. RESULTS: The combination of microarray data with extensive genome annotations resulted in a set of 28,456 experimentally supported transcripts. This set of high-confidence transcripts represents the first experimentally driven annotation of the human genome. In addition, the results from genomic tiling suggest that a large amount of transcription exists outside of annotated regions of the genome and serves as an example of how this activity could be measured on a genome-wide scale. CONCLUSIONS: These data represent one of the most comprehensive assessments of transcriptional activity in the human genome and provide an atlas of human gene expression over a unique set of gene predictions. Before the annotation of the human genome is considered complete, however, the previously unannotated transcriptional activity throughout the genome must be fully characterized.

Chromosomes, Human, Pair 20↗

TMBETA-GENOME: database for annotated beta-barrel membrane proteins in genomic sequences.

We have developed the database, TMBETA-GENOME, for annotated beta-barrel membrane proteins in genomic sequences using statistical methods and machine learning algorithms. The statistical methods are based on amino acid composition, reside pair preference and motifs. In machine learning techniques, the combination of amino acid and dipeptide compositions has been used as main attributes. In addition, annotations have been made using the criterion based on the identification of beta-barrel membrane proteins and exclusion of globular and transmembrane helical proteins. A web interface has been developed for identifying the annotated beta-barrel membrane proteins in all known genomes. The users have the feasibility of selecting the genome from the three kingdoms of life, archaea, bacteria and eukaryote, and five different methods. Further, the statistics for all genomes have been provided along with the links to different algorithms and related databases. It is freely available at http://tmbeta-genome.cbrc.jp/annotation/.

Algorithms↗

Genomic functional annotation using co-evolution profiles of gene clusters.

BACKGROUND: The current speed of sequencing already exceeds the capability of annotation, creating a potential bottleneck. A large proportion of the genes in microbial genomes remains uncharacterized. Here we propose a new method for functional annotation using the conservation patterns of gene clusters. If several gene clusters show the same coevolution pattern across different genomes it is reasonable to infer they are functionally related. The gene cluster phylogenetic profile integrates chromosomal proximity information and phylogenetic profile information and allows us to infer functional dependences between the gene clusters even at great distance on the chromosome. RESULTS: As a proof of concept, we applied our method to the genome of Escherichia coli K12 strain. Our method establishes functional relationships among 176 gene clusters, comprising 738 E. coli genes. The accuracy of pair phylogenetic profiles was compared with the single-gene phylogenetic profile and was shown to be higher. As a result, we are able to suggest functional roles for several previously unknown genes or unknown genomic regions in E. coli. We also examined the robustness of coevolution signals across a larger set of genomes and suggest a possible upper limit of accuracy for the phylogenetic profile methods. CONCLUSIONS: The higher-order phylogenetic profiles, such as the gene-pair phylogenetic profiles, can detect functional dependences that are missed by using conventional single-gene phylogenetic profile or the chromosomal proximity method only. We show that the gene-pair phylogenetic profile is more accurate than the single-gene phylogenetic profiles.

Alleles↗

Apollo: a sequence annotation editor.

The well-established inaccuracy of purely computational methods for annotating genome sequences necessitates an interactive tool to allow biological experts to refine these approximations by viewing and independently evaluating the data supporting each annotation. Apollo was developed to meet this need, enabling curators to inspect genome annotations closely and edit them. FlyBase biologists successfully used Apollo to annotate the Drosophila melanogaster genome and it is increasingly being used as a starting point for the development of customized annotation editing tools for other genome projects.

Animals↗

Conserved spatially interacting motifs of protein superfamilies: application to fold recognition and function annotation of genome data.

Limitations in techniques for the elucidation of protein function have led to an increasing gap between the annotated proteins and those encoded in a genome. The functional selection and three-dimensional structural constraints of proteins in nature often relate to the retention of significant sequence similarity between proteins of similar fold and function despite poor sequence identity. We identify spatially interacting conserved regions, or motifs, within protein superfamilies that are critical for structure and/or function. A search in sequence databases using these descriptors as additional constraints is an approach to identifying putative additional members of superfamilies. Such constrained searches have been tested against proteins of known structure to demonstrate high percentage specificity (93) with a low error rate of 0.0004. This approach has been compared with other sensitive sequence search methods (e.g., PSI-BLAST, HMMsearch, and IMPALA). It has been extended to analyze the distribution of 11 superfamilies in 93 genomes, including the human genome.

Amino Acid Motifs↗

Differential detergent fractionation for non-electrophoretic eukaryote cell proteomics.

Differential detergent fractionation (DDF), which relies on detergents to sequentially extract proteins from eukaryotic cells, has been used to increase proteome coverage of 2D-PAGE. Here, we used DDF extraction in conjunction with the nonelectrophoretic proteomics method of liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. We demonstrate that DDF can be used with 2D-LC ESI MS2 for comprehensive cellular proteomics, including a large proportion of membrane proteins. Compared to some published methods designed to isolate membrane proteins specifically, DDF extraction yields comprehensive proteomes which include twice as many membrane proteins. Two-thirds of these membrane proteins have more than one trans-membrane domain. Since DDF separates proteins based upon their physicochemistry and subcellular localization, this method also provides data useful for functional genome annotation. As more genome sequences are completed, methods which can aid in functional annotation will become increasingly important.

Animals↗

Proceedings of the SMBE Tri-National Young Investigators' Workshop 2005. Investigating the intron recognition mechanism in eukaryotes.

Recent studies indicate that many introns, as well as the complex spliceosomal mechanism to remove them, were present early in eukaryotic evolution. This study examines intron and exon characteristics from annotations of whole genomes to investigate the intron recognition mechanism. Exon definition uses the exon as the unit of recognition, placing length constraints on the exon but not on the intron (allowing it a greater range of lengths). In contrast, intron definition uses the intron itself as the unit of recognition and thus removes constraints on internal exon length forced by the use of an exon definition mechanism. Thus, intron and exon lengths within a genome can reflect the constraints imposed by its splicing. This study shows that it is possible firstly to recover valid intron and exon information from genome annotation. We then compare internal intron and exon information from a range of eukaryotic genomes and investigate possible evolutionary length constraints on introns and exons and how they can impact on the intron recognition mechanism. Results indicate that exon definition-based mechanisms may predominate in vertebrates although the exact system in fish is expected to show some differences with the better characterized system from mammals. We also raise the possibility that the last common ancestor of plants and animals contained some type of exon definition and that this mechanism was replaced in some genes and lineages by intron definition, possibly as a result of intron loss and/or intron shortening.

Alternative Splicing↗

COMPAM :visualization of combining pairwise alignments for multiple genomes.

UNLABELLED: COMPAM is a tool for visualizing relationships among multiple whole genomes by combining all pairwise genome alignments. It displays shared conserved regions (blocks) and where these blocks occur (edges) as block relation graphs which can be explored interactively. An unannotated genome, e.g. can then be explored using information from well-annotated genomes, COG-based genome annotation and genes. COMPAM can run either as a stand-alone application or through an applet that is provided as service to PLATCOM, a toolset for whole genome comparative analysis, where a wide variety of genomes can be easily selected. Features provided by COMPAM include the ability to export genome relationship information into file formats that can be used by other existing tools. AVAILABILITY: http://bio.informatics.indiana.edu/projects/compam/

Algorithms↗

Large-scale benchmarking of prokaryotic annotation tools across thousands of species.

BACKGROUND: Genome annotation is an important step in deriving functional meaning from prokaryotic sequencing data, yet systematic evaluations guiding tool selection are lacking. We present the first large-scale investigation of four prominent open-source annotation tools (Prokka, Bakta, EggNOG-mapper, and PGAP) across 156,033 diverse genomes. This includes Escherichia coli strains for baseline performance, thousands of archaea and bacteria genomes, as well as frameshifted and metagenome-assembled genomes. RESULTS: Bakta excels in annotating high-quality bacterial genomes, while PGAP was better for archaeal genomes and challenging bacterial assemblies, including metagenome-assembled, fragmented, or contaminated samples. For Gene Ontology annotation, PGAP consistently provides broader term coverage, whereas EggNOG-mapper offers more terms per feature. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings highlight tool-specific strengths crucial for selecting optimal solutions based on genome quality, taxonomy, and origin (e.g. MAGs). This study provides an evidence-based guide for users and informs future tool development.

Molecular Sequence Annotation↗

Essentiality and damage in metabolic networks.

Understanding the architecture of physiological functions from annotated genome sequences is a major task for postgenomic biology. From the annotated genome sequence of the microbe Escherichia coli, we propose a general quantitative definition of enzyme importance in a metabolic network. Using a graph analysis of its metabolism, we relate the extent of the topological damage generated in the metabolic network by the deletion of an enzyme to the experimentally determined viability of the organism in the absence of that enzyme. We show that the network is robust and that the extent of the damage relates to enzyme importance. We predict that a large fraction (91%) of enzymes causes little damage when removed, while a small group (9%) can cause serious damage. Experimental results confirm that this group contains the majority of essential enzymes. The results may reveal a universal property of metabolic networks.

Computer Simulation↗