MSDB: a comprehensive, annotated database of microsatellites

Abstract

Microsatellites are short tandem repeats of 1-6 nucleotide motifs, studied for their utility as genome markers and in forensics. Recent evidence points to the role of microsatellites in important regulatory functions, and their length polymorphisms at coding regions are linked to various neurodegenerative disorders in humans. Microsatellites show a taxon-specific enrichment in eukaryotic genomes, and their evolution remains poorly understood. Though other databases of microsatellites exist, they fall short on several fronts. MSDB (MicroSatellite DataBase) is a collection of >4 billion microsatellites from 37 680 genomes presented in a user-friendly web portal for easy, interactive analysis and visualization. This is by far the most comprehensive, annotated, updated database to access and analyze microsatellite data of multiple species. The features of MSDB enable users to explore the data as tables that can be filtered and exported, and also as interactive charts to view and compare the data of multiple species simultaneously. Its modularity and architecture permit seamless updates with new data, making it a powerful tool and useful resource to researchers working on this important class of DNA elements, particularly in context of their evolution and emerging roles in genome organization and gene regulation.

Figure 1.

Browse page of MSDB showing microsatellite information of Homo sapiens (hg38 build of UCSC). Black arrow indicates the ‘Explore Repeats’ button that opens the table view. The button to toggle the modal view is indicated with the red arrow.