VectorBase: a data resource for invertebrate vector genomics

Abstract

VectorBase (http://www.vectorbase.org) is an NIAID-funded Bioinformatic Resource Center focused on invertebrate vectors of human pathogens. VectorBase annotates and curates vector genomes providing a web accessible integrated resource for the research community. Currently, VectorBase contains genome information for three mosquito species: Aedes aegypti, Anopheles gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus, a body louse Pediculus humanus and a tick species Ixodes scapularis. Since our last report VectorBase has initiated a community annotation system, a microarray and gene expression repository and controlled vocabularies for anatomy and insecticide resistance. We have continued to develop both the software infrastructure and tools for interrogating the stored data.

Figure 1.

Three-way comparative display of the mosquito genomes An. gambiae, Ae. aegypti and C. quinquefasciatus (top panel to bottom panel, respectively). Gene predictions are coloured black with the regions of similarity between the genomes indicated by the pink boxes where similarity is indicated by the connection of blocks using the green lines. The upper panel, An. gambiae, also shows a manual annotation confirming the prediction and that the refinement of predictions in one species can be leveraged to improve the quality of prediction across all the mosquito genomes.

Figure 2.

Integration of the genome browser with the microarray gene expression database. Links from gene pages, highlighted in red in the top left navigation panel, connect to a summary of the gene expression in all available experiments (right-hand panel). Similarly, there are direct links from the mapped reporter probes on the genome browser (bottom left panel) to the gene expression summary based on inferred overlap of the reporter and the current genome annotation. The gene expression summary lists experiments for which the gene has data ranked by statistical significance with a brief summary of the experimental details and links to more detailed analysis.