A web-based multi-genome synteny viewer for customized data.

BACKGROUND: Web-based synteny visualization tools are important for sharing data and revealing patterns of complicated genome conservation and rearrangements. Such tools should allow biologists to upload genomic data for their own analysis. This requirement is critical because individual biologists are generating large amounts of genomic sequences that quickly overwhelm any centralized web resources to collect and display all those data. Recently, we published a web-based synteny viewer, GSV, which was designed to satisfy the above requirement. However, GSV can only compare two genomes at a given time. Extending the functionality of GSV to visualize multiple genomes is important to meet the increasing demand of the research community. RESULTS: We have developed a multi-Genome Synteny Viewer (mGSV). Similar to GSV, mGSV is a web-based tool that allows users to upload their own genomic data files for visualization. Multiple genomes can be presented in a single integrated view with an enhanced user interface. Users can navigate through all the selected genomes in either pairwise or multiple viewing mode to examine conserved genomic regions as well as the accompanying genome annotations. Besides serving users who manually interact with the web server, mGSV also provides Web Services for machine-to-machine communication to accept data sent by other remote resources. The entire mGSV package can also be downloaded for easy local installation. CONCLUSIONS: mGSV significantly enhances the original functionalities of GSV. A web server hosting mGSV is provided at http://cas-bioinfo.cas.unt.edu/mgsv.

GSV: a web-based genome synteny viewer for customized data.

BACKGROUND: The analysis of genome synteny is a common practice in comparative genomics. With the advent of DNA sequencing technologies, individual biologists can rapidly produce their genomic sequences of interest. Although web-based synteny visualization tools are convenient for biologists to use, none of the existing ones allow biologists to upload their own data for analysis. RESULTS: We have developed the web-based Genome Synteny Viewer (GSV) that allows users to upload two data files for synteny visualization, the mandatory synteny file for specifying genomic positions of conserved regions and the optional genome annotation file. GSV presents two selected genomes in a single integrated view while still retaining the browsing flexibility necessary for exploring individual genomes. Users can browse and filter for genomic regions of interest, change the color or shape of each annotation track as well as re-order, hide or show the tracks dynamically. Additional features include downloadable images, immediate email notification and tracking of usage history. The entire GSV package is also light-weighted which enables easy local installation. CONCLUSIONS: GSV provides a unique option for biologists to analyze genome synteny by uploading their own data set to a web-based comparative genome browser. A web server hosting GSV is provided at http://cas-bioinfo.cas.unt.edu/gsv, and the software is also freely available for local installations.

Diversity of bacteria at healthy human conjunctiva.

PURPOSE: Ocular surface (OS) microbiota contributes to infectious and autoimmune diseases of the eye. Comprehensive analysis of microbial diversity at the OS has been impossible because of the limitations of conventional cultivation techniques. This pilot study aimed to explore true diversity of human OS microbiota using DNA sequencing-based detection and identification of bacteria. METHODS: Composition of the bacterial community was characterized using deep sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene amplicon libraries generated from total conjunctival swab DNA. The DNA sequences were classified and the diversity parameters measured using bioinformatics software ESPRIT and MOTHUR and tools available through the Ribosomal Database Project-II (RDP-II). RESULTS: Deep sequencing of conjunctival rDNA from four subjects yielded a total of 115,003 quality DNA reads, corresponding to 221 species-level phylotypes per subject. The combined bacterial community classified into 5 phyla and 59 distinct genera. However, 31% of all DNA reads belonged to unclassified or novel bacteria. The intersubject variability of individual OS microbiomes was very significant. Regardless, 12 genera-Pseudomonas, Propionibacterium, Bradyrhizobium, Corynebacterium, Acinetobacter, Brevundimonas, Staphylococci, Aquabacterium, Sphingomonas, Streptococcus, Streptophyta, and Methylobacterium-were ubiquitous among the analyzed cohort and represented the putative "core" of conjunctival microbiota. The other 47 genera accounted for <4% of the classified portion of this microbiome. Unexpectedly, healthy conjunctiva contained many genera that are commonly identified as ocular surface pathogens. CONCLUSIONS: The first DNA sequencing-based survey of bacterial population at the conjunctiva have revealed an unexpectedly diverse microbial community. All analyzed samples contained ubiquitous (core) genera that included commensal, environmental, and opportunistic pathogenic bacteria.

Characteristic male urine microbiomes associate with asymptomatic sexually transmitted infection.

BACKGROUND: The microbiome of the male urogenital tract is poorly described but it has been suggested that bacterial colonization of the male urethra might impact risk of sexually transmitted infection (STI). Previous cultivation-dependent studies showed that a variety of non-pathogenic bacteria colonize the urethra but did not thoroughly characterize these microbiomes or establish links between the compositions of urethral microbiomes and STI. METHODOLOGY/FINDINGS: Here, we used 16S rRNA PCR and sequencing to identify bacteria in urine specimens collected from men who lacked symptoms of urethral inflammation but who differed in status for STI. All of the urine samples contained multiple bacterial genera and many contained taxa that colonize the human vagina. Uncultivated bacteria associated with female genital tract pathology were abundant in specimens from men who had STI. CONCLUSIONS: Urine microbiomes from men with STI were dominated by fastidious, anaerobic and uncultivated bacteria. The same taxa were rare in STI negative individuals. Our findings suggest that the composition of male urine microbiomes is related to STI.

An Ergatis-based prokaryotic genome annotation web server.

SUMMARY: Ergatis is a flexible workflow management system for designing and executing complex bioinformatics pipelines. However, its complexity restricts its usage to only highly skilled bioinformaticians. We have developed a web-based prokaryotic genome annotation server, Integrative Services for Genomics Analysis (ISGA), which builds upon the Ergatis workflow system, integrates other dynamic analysis tools and provides intuitive web interfaces for biologists to customize and execute their own annotation pipelines. ISGA is designed to be installed at genomics core facilities and be used directly by biologists. AVAILABILITY: ISGA is accessible at http://isga.cgb.indiana.edu/ and the system is also freely available for local installation.