Biological data visualization - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Biology Data Visualization is a branch of bioinformatics

Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics is the application of computer science and information technology to the field of biology and medicine. Bioinformatics deals with algorithms, databases and information systems, web technologies, artificial intelligence and soft computing, information and computation theory, software...

concerned with the application of computer graphics

Computer graphics

Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....

, scientific visualization

Scientific visualization

Scientific visualization is an interdisciplinary branch of science according to Friendly "primarily concerned with the visualization of three-dimensional phenomena , where the emphasis is on realistic renderings of volumes, surfaces, illumination sources, and so forth, perhaps...

, and information visualization

Information visualization

Information visualization is the interdisciplinary study of "the visual representation of large-scale collections of non-numerical information, such as files and lines of code in software systems, library and bibliographic databases, networks of relations on the internet, and so forth".- Overview...

to different areas of the life sciences

Life sciences

The life sciences comprise the fields of science that involve the scientific study of living organisms, like plants, animals, and human beings. While biology remains the centerpiece of the life sciences, technological advances in molecular biology and biotechnology have led to a burgeoning of...

. This includes visualization of sequences

Séquences

Séquences is a French-language film magazine originally published in Montreal, Quebec by the Commission des ciné-clubs du Centre catholique du cinéma de Montréal, a Roman Catholic film society. Founded in 1955, the publication was edited for forty years by Léo Bonneville, a member of the Clerics...

, genomes, alignments

Sequence alignment

In bioinformatics, a sequence alignment is a way of arranging the sequences of DNA, RNA, or protein to identify regions of similarity that may be a consequence of functional, structural, or evolutionary relationships between the sequences. Aligned sequences of nucleotide or amino acid residues are...

, phylogenies, macromolecular structures, systems biology

Systems biology

Systems biology is a term used to describe a number of trends in bioscience research, and a movement which draws on those trends. Proponents describe systems biology as a biology-based inter-disciplinary study field that focuses on complex interactions in biological systems, claiming that it uses...

, microscopy

Microscopy

Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view samples and objects that cannot be seen with the unaided eye...

, and magnetic resonance imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging , nuclear magnetic resonance imaging , or magnetic resonance tomography is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to visualize detailed internal structures...

data. Software tools used for visualizing biological data range from simple, stand-alone programs to complex, integrated systems.

State-of-the-art and perspectives

Today we are experiencing a rapid growth in volume and diversity of biological data, presenting an increasing challenge for biologists. A key step in understanding and learning from these data is visualization. Thus, there has been a corresponding increase in the number and diversity of systems for visualizing biological data.

An emerging trend is the blurring of boundaries between the visualization of 3D structures at atomic resolution, visualization of larger complexes by cryo-electron microscopy

Cryo-electron microscopy

Cryo-electron microscopy , or electron cryomicroscopy, is a form of transmission electron microscopy where the sample is studied at cryogenic temperatures...

, and visualization of the location of proteins and complexes within whole cells and tissues.

A second emerging trend is an increase in the availability and importance of time-resolved data from systems biology

Systems biology

, electron microscopy and cell and tissue imaging. In contrast, visualization of trajectories has long been a prominent part of molecular dynamics

Molecular dynamics

Molecular dynamics is a computer simulation of physical movements of atoms and molecules. The atoms and molecules are allowed to interact for a period of time, giving a view of the motion of the atoms...

.

Finally, as datasets are increasing in size, complexity, and interconnectness, biological visualization systems are improving in usability

Usability

Usability is the ease of use and learnability of a human-made object. The object of use can be a software application, website, book, tool, machine, process, or anything a human interacts with. A usability study may be conducted as a primary job function by a usability analyst or as a secondary job...

, data integration

Data integration

Data integration involves combining data residing in different sources and providing users with a unified view of these data.This process becomes significant in a variety of situations, which include both commercial and scientific domains...

and standardization

Standardization

Standardization is the process of developing and implementing technical standards.The goals of standardization can be to help with independence of single suppliers , compatibility, interoperability, safety, repeatability, or quality....

List of visualization systems

A large number of software systems are available for visualization biological data. The links below link lists of such systems, grouped by application areas.

Related conferences

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