What is a biological database?

As a result of the massive amount of data produced in biological research, for example, in inexpensive DNA sequencing technology, biological databases have been developed. GenBank, which compiles all known protein and DNA sequences, was one of the first databases to appear. It is kept up by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Gene bank helped the Human Genome Project get off the ground (HGP). The comprehensive sequencing and reading of the genetic code were made possible by the HGP. For the best analysis, biological databases divide their data into two categories: raw data and curated data (or annotated). Biological databases are varied, dynamic, and complicated while also being inconsistent. Because there aren't any standards at the ontological level, there is inconsistency.

Databases and databanks were once thought to be very different things. But over time, the term "database" gained favour. Direct data submission to biological databases is made for data indexing, organizing, and optimization. They facilitate the discovery of pertinent biological data by making it computable and accessible. Data mining methods that save time and resources make all biological data easily accessible. Sequence and structure databases are two broad categories of biological databases. Protein structures are stored in structure databases, and nucleic acid and protein sequences are stored in sequence databases.

Sequence, structure, and functional databases are the three main categories of biological databases. Gene function, structure, location (both cellular and chromosomal), clinical implications of mutations, and similarities of biological sequences and structures are all information that can be found in biological databases.

FAQs on What is a biological database

Q. What is the importance of biological databases?

Ans. Bioinformatics heavily relies on biological datasets. They give researchers access to various biologically significant data, such as the genomic sequences of an expanding number of organisms.