Ncbi protein

Definition

The NCBI protein database is a comprehensive collection of protein sequences and related information maintained by the National Center for Biotechnology Information. It serves as a crucial resource for researchers by providing access to a vast array of protein data, including functional annotations, structure predictions, and links to related literature and genomic information. This database enables users to analyze protein sequences, explore their functions, and understand their evolutionary relationships.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. The NCBI protein database includes over 300 million protein sequences, making it one of the largest protein databases available.
2. It offers tools for advanced searching, allowing users to filter results by organism, sequence length, and more.
3. NCBI integrates data from various sources like RefSeq, GenBank, and other specialized databases to ensure comprehensive coverage of protein sequences.
4. Users can access detailed annotations including functional descriptions, post-translational modifications, and interaction networks associated with proteins.
5. NCBI also provides links to relevant scientific publications, enhancing the utility of its protein database for research purposes.

Review Questions

• How does the NCBI protein database enhance the study of protein functions and evolutionary relationships?
  • The NCBI protein database enhances the study of protein functions and evolutionary relationships by offering a comprehensive collection of annotated protein sequences. Researchers can access information about each protein's function, structural characteristics, and related literature. By comparing sequences across different organisms, users can also infer evolutionary relationships and understand how proteins have diverged or conserved their functions over time.
• Discuss the significance of integrating data from multiple sources in the NCBI protein database for researchers.
  • Integrating data from multiple sources in the NCBI protein database is significant because it provides researchers with a holistic view of protein information. By compiling data from RefSeq, GenBank, and other databases, NCBI ensures that users have access to a wide range of annotations and insights about proteins. This integration allows for more accurate analysis and interpretation of protein sequences, ultimately facilitating advancements in fields like drug discovery and functional genomics.
• Evaluate the impact of tools such as BLAST on the utilization of the NCBI protein database for biological research.
  • Tools like BLAST significantly impact the utilization of the NCBI protein database by enabling researchers to efficiently identify homologous sequences within vast datasets. This capability allows scientists to quickly compare their experimental data against existing databases, uncovering potential functional similarities and evolutionary relationships. The rapid identification of homologous proteins can lead to insights into gene function, structural biology, and potential applications in biotechnology or medicine, underscoring the value of combining NCBI's resources with powerful analytical tools.

Related terms

UniProt:

A central hub for protein sequence and functional information, UniProt provides detailed annotations on proteins from various organisms and integrates data from multiple sources.

FASTA: A text-based format for representing nucleotide or protein sequences, often used for sequence alignment and database searches.

BLAST:

A tool for comparing an input sequence against a database of sequences to identify similarities, commonly used in protein analysis to find homologous sequences.