Visual annotation of the gene database

The genes in NCBI databases are currently annotated with itemized text (Gene Reference Into Function, or GeneRIF). A previous work suggests that the visual presentation can be more effective when time and space are under heavy constraints. Here we report a novel annotation of the genome information using Web 2.0 technologies: GeneGIF (Gene Graphics Into Function). The users can quickly scan through important functions of each gene from a graph, and then go to detailed pages when they find interesting annotations. The modular implementation makes it easily pluggable into other widely used databases without reprogramming. Similar approaches are being developed to incorporate information to other types of genomics and proteomics databases.