Bioinformatics Questions
There are several tools used for functional annotation in bioinformatics. Some commonly used tools include:
1. BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool): BLAST is used to compare a query sequence against a database of known sequences to identify similar sequences and infer functional annotations based on homology.
2. InterProScan: InterProScan is a tool that searches protein sequences against a collection of protein signature databases, such as Pfam, PROSITE, and InterPro, to predict functional domains and motifs.
3. Gene Ontology (GO) Annotation Tools: GO annotation tools, such as Blast2GO and PANTHER, use sequence similarity searches and statistical algorithms to assign functional annotations based on the Gene Ontology database, which categorizes genes and gene products into functional terms.
4. KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes): KEGG is a database that provides functional annotations for genes and gene products, as well as metabolic pathway information. Tools like KAAS (KEGG Automatic Annotation Server) can be used to assign KEGG orthology and pathway annotations to query sequences.
5. DAVID (Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery): DAVID is a web-based tool that allows functional annotation of gene lists by performing enrichment analysis, identifying overrepresented functional terms, and providing functional annotation charts and networks.
These tools, among others, play a crucial role in functional annotation by providing insights into the biological functions and potential roles of genes and gene products.