|
Understand the
definitions and usage of common scientific terms in proteomics by
browsing this Glossary from the Proteome Society®.
#
| A | B
| C | D
| E | F
| G | H
| I | J | K | L
| M | N
| O | P
| Q |
R | S
| T | U
| V |
W | X | Y | Z
B
Bioinformatics
The scientific discipline that encompasses all aspects of biological
information acquisition, processing, storage, distribution, analysis
and interpretation that = combines the tools of mathematics, computer
science and biology with the aim of understanding the biological significance
of a variety of data. Also referred to as computational biology.
Biomarker
Any molecular species found to provide correlation to a particular
phenotype or perturbation of a biological system. Co-variant analysis
of multiple biomarkers or patterns usually results in higher correlation
confidence.
BLAST
Basic Local Alignment Search Tool; a program for searching biosequence
databases which was developed and is maintained by a group at the
National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). There are
several versions of BLAST: BLASTP which searches a protein database,
BLASTN to search a nucleotide database, TBLASTN which searches for
a protein sequence in a nucleotide database by translating nucleotide
sequences in all 6 reading frames, BLASTX which can search for a
nucleotide sequence against a protein database by translating the
query via all 6 reading frames, gapped-BLAST, and psi-BLAST. BLAST
locates patches of regional similarity instead of calculating the
best overall alignment using gaps. The program then uses a scoring
matrix to rank these matches as positive, negative or zero. If the
initial match is scored highly, the search is expanded in both directions
until the ranking score falls off.
BLOCKS
A database of ungapped multiple alignments for protein/peptide families
in PROSITE.
BLOSUM
Blocks substitution matrix - see "scoring matrix".
Blue
Native gel electrophoresis
A "charge shift" electrophoresis of native membrane protein
complexes using negatively-charged bound Coomassie Blue to give
electrophoretic mobility.
TOP
C
Capillary
electrophoresis
Solution or gel based electrophoresis performed in micro-glass capillaries.
Carrier ampholytes
A mixture of synthetic low molecular weight amphylotes .
CE
Capillary Electrophoresis; a protein separation method based upon
linear separation within a fine capillary.
CentiMorgan
(cM)
The unit of measurement for distance and recombinate frequency on
a genetic map. Formally, the length (number of bases) that have
a 1% probability of participating in mixing of genes. For humans,
the average length of a cM is one million base pairs (or 1 megabase,
Mb).
Chaotropic agents
Denaturing salts which bind strongly to proteins decreasing hydration
CHAPS
Zwitterionic detergent for solubilizing proteins for 2D gel electrophoresis.
TOP
CID
Collision Induced Dissociation.
Client
A computer, or the software running on a computer, that interacts
with another computer at a remote site (server). Note the difference
between client and user.
CLUSTAL
W
A general-purpose program for multiple alignments of DNA and protein
sequences developed by Thompson, et. al., in 1994.
Cluster analysis
A process of assigning data points (sequences) into groups (clusters),
starting from pair-wise distances.
Codon
A set of three nucleotides that codes for a single and specific
amino acid.
Co-immunoprecipitation Immunoprecipitation of interacting proteins
using an antibody to only one of the proteins.
Colloidal
Coomassie
A water soluble Coomassie with enhanced sensitivity.
TOP
Columbation
Transition from liquid to gas phase in an ionized state.
Consensus
map
The location of all consensus sequences in a series of multiply
aligned proteins or polynucleotides.
Consensus
sequence
The most commonly occurring amino acid or nucleotide at each position
of an aligned series of proteins or polynucleotides.
Convergence
The end-point of any algorithm that uses iteration or recursion
to guide a series of data processing steps. An algorithm is usually
said to have reached convergence when the difference between the
computed and observed steps falls below a pre-defined threshold.
CORBA
Common Object Request Broker Architecture. A technology specification
(sometimes referred to as a wrapper) that uses an interface definition
language (IDL, code which defines the properties of data modules
or objects) and software (the Object Request Broker or ORB) to define
how objects (self-contained modules of data or instructions) can
share the characteristics needed to form a unified application.
The CORBA specification was defined by the Object Management Group
(OMG, http://www.omg.org/) in 1991.
TOP
Cup loader
A cup (Amersham Biotech) for directly loading protein mixtures on
to hydrated immobilized pH gradient strips.
Curated
database
Annotated database created under the supervision of a curator, who
makes judgments as data are cleaned up and merged.
CZE
Capillary Zone Electrophoresis
|
