CLIX: a search algorithm for finding novel ligands capable of binding proteins of known three-dimensional structure.

A computer algorithm, CLIX, capable of searching a crystallographic data-base of small molecules for candidates which have both steric and chemical likelihood of binding a protein of known three-dimensional structure is presented. The algorithm is a significant advance over previous strategies which consider solely steric or chemical requirements for binding. The algorithm is shown to be capable of predicting the correct binding geometry of sialic acid to a mutant influenza-virus hemagglutinin and of proposing a number of potential new ligands to this protein.     

BBReader: A computer program for the combined use of the BioMagResBank and PDB databases

A computer program (BBReader) was developed which performs an inverse search in theBioMagResBank database. Given (cross) peak positions of a protein, the program searchesfor atoms with matching chemical shifts and suggests possible assignments for user-specifiedhomo- and heteronuclear one- to three-dimensional COSY- and NOESY-type experiments.It can handle 1H, 13C and 15N spectra. Distance information from PDB files can be utilizedfor filtering possible NOESY cross peak assignments.     

Derivation and testing of pair potentials for protein folding. When is the quasichemical approximation correct?

Many existing derivations of knowledge-based statistical pair potentials invoke the quasichemical approximation to estimate the expected side-chain contact frequency if there were no amino acid pair-specific interactions. At first glance, the quasichemical approximation that treats the residues in a protein as being disconnected and expresses the side-chain contact probability as being proportional to the product of the mole fractions of the pair of residues would appear to be rather severe. To investigate the validity of this approximation, we introduce two new reference states in which no specific pair interactions between amino acids are allowed, but in which the connectivity of the protein chain is retained. The first estimates the expected number of side-chain contracts by treating the protein as a Gaussian random coil polymer. The second, more realistic reference state includes the effects of chain connectivity, secondary structure, and chain compactness by estimating the expected side-chain contrast probability by placing the sequence of interest in each member of a library of structures of comparable compactness to the native conformation. The side-chain contact maps are not allowed to readjust to the sequence of interest, i.e., the side chains cannot repack. This situation would hold rigorously if all amino acids were the same size. Both reference states effectively permit the factorization of the side-chain contact probability into sequence-dependent and structure-dependent terms. Then, because the sequence distribution of amino acids in proteins is random, the quasichemical approximation to each of these reference states is shown to be excellent. Thus, the range of validity of the quasichemical approximation is determined by the magnitude of the side-chain repacking term, which is, at present, unknown. Finally, the performance of these two sets of pair interaction potentials as well as side-chain contact fraction-based interaction scales is assessed by inverse folding tests both without and with allowing for gaps.     

电子通讯与生物大分子序列分析

交互网络(Internet)的发展为联网的计算机用户之间进行信息交流提供了有效途径.就分子生物学家而言,他们不仅可以利用电子邮件系统发送和接收信息,而且更重要的是能够存取大量的分子生物学数据库和软件.利用Internet可以开展多种序列分析作业,包括序列数据库的类似性检索、基因编码区鉴定和蛋白质二级结构分析等.一个数据库,例如GenBank,可以通过多种方式来存取:a.电子邮件文件服务器,b.文件传送协议(FTP),c.Gopher,WAIS或WWW等服务器-客户机(Server-Client)系统.专为分子生物学家设计的BIOSCI电子公告牌为研究人员开展学术讨论、寻求别人帮助和与数据库人员交流提供了极大的方便.     

Tools for assessing European streams with macroinvertebrates: major results and conclusions from the STAR project

This short paper summarises the information developed in the EU funded research project STAR on autecology databases, metrics, multimetrics and community approaches. For Europe the WFD implementation gave an important stimulus for the development of ecology based assessment techniques. Along with the development of metrics and multimetrics indices taxalists and autecological information were strongly improved. Recommendations are given to further develop ecological assessment in European streams and rivers.     

NCBI的数据库资源及其应用

NCBI是美国的一个大型生物信息学系统,它主要通过NCBI网站为全世界的科学家服务,它拥有GenBank,RefSeq,UniGene,dbSNP等等多种大型生物学数据库,并且提供了多种数据库查询工具,如：Entrez,PubMed,LocusLink,TaxonomyBrowser等等,以及多种数据库分析资源,对于我们查询文献,人类基因组信息、基因表达、蛋白质结构、肿瘤遗传信息,以及不同种属遗传信息等等有非常大的帮助。是一个非常重要的生物医学资源。     

直系同源基因的识别方法与数据库

直系同源(orthology)是指由于物种形成事件而享有共同祖先的基因之间的关系,直系同源基因之间通常具有相似的结构和生物学功能.由于基因组和转录组序列的快速积累,精确的识别直系同源基因有助于功能基因的注释,比较和进化基因组学研究.综述了现有的识别直系同源基因的主要方法,并列举了由此构建的数据库.这些方法可以归纳为三大类,第一类是基于序列相似性的方法,具有识别速度快以及灵敏度高等优点;第二类是基于构建系统发育树的方法,具有准确性高和信息量大等优点;第三类是将上述两种方法结合起来的混合方法,更好地平衡了灵敏性和准确性.最后总结了识别过程所面临的问题.     

拟南芥中影响基因对胁迫响应模式的顺式元件的挖掘

启动子中关键元件的数量、碱基变化等影响着所调控基因的表达模式。本文基于TAIR数据库的基因组序列和表达谱数据,首先通过BLAST比对和表达模式相关性分析,在拟南芥基因组范围内获得一批启动子序列相似程度很高而下游基因表达模式相反的启动子对,进而借助于PLACE顺式元件库,运用PatSearch软件找到这些启动子对中所含顺式元件种类与数量,并通过Culster聚类,GeneDoc和ContigExpress软件分析,获得了15个能影响胁迫条件下基因表达模式的关键顺式元件,这一发现暗示了生物系统利用较少的调控元件构建稳健与复杂的转录调控系统的方式。     

"基因电脑克隆"软件SiClone的并行优化研究与实现

生物信息学中,发现、鉴别新基因是承上启下的一步,它既承接了过往如“基因组测序”的工作,又是未来“后基因时代”研究的基石．“基因电脑克隆”是利用计算手段发现、鉴别新基因的方法,SiClone软件实现了“基因电脑克隆”功能．本文对SiClone软件操作的数据库提出并行处理方案,并详述了基于MPI(message passing interface)平台实现的并行优化版本PSiClone．根据已得到的EST数据库,展示了软件并行版PSiClone的运行性能,试验数据库EST序列条数仅仅是NCBI(The National Center for Biotechnology Information)dbEST庞大数据库的很小部分,这也暗示我们软件的并行工作对于大数据库的比较和运算将更有应用前景．