The International Nucleotide Sequence Database (INSD) consists of a joint effort to collect and disseminate databases about DNA and RNA sequences. It involves the following computerized databases: DNA Data Bank of Japan (Japan), GenBank (USA) and the EMBL Nucleotide Sequence Database (European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Germany). New and updated data on nucleotide sequences contributed by research teams to each of the three databases are synchronized on a daily basis, thanks to continuous interactions and meetings between the staffs of the organizations in charge. A database is a collection of information stored in a computer in a systematic way, such that a computer program can consult it to answer questions. ... Space-filling model of a section of DNA molecule Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or deoxyribose nucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions specifying the biological development of all cellular forms of life (and many viruses). ... Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a nucleic acid consisting of a string of covalently-bound nucleotides. ... A database is a collection of information stored in a computer in a systematic way, such that a computer program can consult it to answer questions. ... The GenBank sequence database is an annotated collection of all publicly available nucleotide sequences and their protein translations. ... The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) is a molecular biology research institution supported by 18 European countries. ... A nucleotide is a monomer or the structural unit of nucleotide chains forming nucleic acids as RNA and DNA. A nucleotide consists of a heterocyclic nucleobase, a pentose sugar, and a phosphate or polyphosphate group. ...

The DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank synchronization is possible thanks to a number of guidelines which are produced and published by an International Advisory. These consist in a common definition of the feature tables [1] (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/embl/Documentation/FT_definitions/feature_table.html) for the databases, which regulate the content and syntax [2] (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/embl/Documentation/DTD/INSDSeq_v1.3.dtd.txt) of the database entries, in the form of a common DTD or Document Type Definition. In linguistics, syntax is the study of the rules, or patterned relations, that govern the way the words in a sentence come together. ... DTD is an acronym that can stand for: Document Type Definition, used in XML programming Delta Tau Delta, a US-based college fraternity This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

The syntax is called INSDSeq and its core consists of the letter sequence of the gene expression (aminoacid sequence) and the letter sequence for nucleotide bases in the gene or decoded segment. In [3] (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/cgi-bin/dbfetch?X56734) a DBFetch operation shows a typical INSD entry. Gene expression (also protein expression or often simply expression) is the process by which a genes information is converted into the structures and functions of a cell. ... In chemistry, an amino acid is any molecule that contains both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. ...

Related topics

• National Center for Biotechnology Information
• Biological database
• Sequence database
• Bioinformatics

The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is part of the US National Library of Medicine (NLM), which is a branch of the US National Institutes of Health. ... As of 2004, there are around 500 public and commercial biological databases. ... In the field of bioinformatics, a sequence database is a large collection of DNA, protein, or other sequences stored on a computer. ... Bioinformatics or computational biology is the use of techniques from applied mathematics, informatics, statistics, and computer science to solve biological problems. ...

External links

• INSD site (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/embl/Contact/collaboration.html)
• DNA Data Bank of Japan (http://www.ddbj.nig.ac.jp/)
• EMBL Nucleotide Database (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/embl/index.html)
• GenBank Nucleotide Search (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=Nucleotide)