K12> Tour the Human Genome -- Network Nuggets
- From: Gleason Sackmann <gleason@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: NetHappenings <nethappenings@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 08:28:01 -0600
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Net Happenings - From Educational CyberPlayGround
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From: "nuggets ola" <nuggets@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <networknuggets@xxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thu, 13 Mar 2003 11:33:43 -0800
Subject: Tour the Human Genome -- Network Nuggets
*** [[[ TOUR THE HUMAN GENOME ]]] ***
http://www.ensembl.org/Homo_sapiens/
The last in our series of Nuggets marking the 50th
anniversary of the discovery of DNA, this is for
Biology teachers who are willing to do a little digging!
The final version of the human genome is due for
unveiling in May or June this year. What does our
genome look like? The Ensembl site puts the whole
thing -- every chromosome, base pair, nucleotide
and sequenced protein -- into a point-and-click
format. It's a browser interface to the EMBL
databank, one of the three publicly available
human genome databases. When scientists want to
browse the genome, this is where they go.
Unlike most websites appearing in Nuggets, Ensembl is
a bit of a challenge to browse!
Why go to the trouble? With a classroom projector,
and after a little practice, you can actually show
your class a portion of their own genetic material.
I don't think it's feasible to show the real genome
in a school setting any other way.
To learn how this Ensebml human genome browser
works, you can try these...
1. Take the "Ensembl Tour" at
http://www.ensembl.org/Docs/enstour. To save
time, start at Slide 10 in the top menu.
2. Follow a worked example to a specific gene and
protein at http://www.ensembl.org/Docs/worked_eg.pdf.
Most features on the screen are incomprehensible to lay
folk, but on the "ContigView" screen, check the section
called "Basepair View" near the bottom. There is the
actual base-pair sequence GTAACGGATTTA... along both
sides of the alpha helix. The amino acids they can code
for are listed alongside.
I expect that biology teachers who have learned some
genomics can explain more features in this genome
browser. It's a joint venture of the European
Bioinformatics Institute and the Sanger Institute in
Cambridge, UK. There is no advertising. Faster web
access is recommended since it's heavily graphical.
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