The web meets genomics: a DNA search engine for microbes

Microbes are the most common and diverse organisms on the planet. In recent years, researchers have accumulated data about them, particularly with respect to their genetic background. This avalanche of information - known as "Big Data" - is a fantastic source of new knowledge and medical progress. Researchers at the Institut Pasteur and EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute have combined their knowledge of bacterial genetics and web search to build a DNA search engine for microbial data. The search engine, described in a paper published in Nature Biotechnology, could enable researchers and public health agencies to use genome sequencing data to monitor the spread of antibiotic resistance genes. By making this vast amount of data discoverable, the search engine could also allow researchers to learn more about bacteria and viruses.

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