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A European database of Biological volume Images

Ziel



Structural information in the form of three-dimensional "volumes" is nowadays generally accepted as a crucial component in our understanding of biological processes, because these data foster the understanding of key functions in the cell. The purpose of this project is to establish a European database for volume data of biological specimens, the BioImage database, using carefully specified volume descriptors and well-defined public domain volume formats. This database will include volume data produced by a number of different techniques. By volume data we refer to three-dimensional information that is represented as multidimensional raster images. Provided that volume data are of sufficient resolution, atomic coordinate data can be derived thereof to model the data in terms of individual amino acids or nucleotides. Similarly, atomic coordinate data can b converted to volume data for quantitative comparisons with data of a lower resolution.
In spite of their vital importance in structural and cell biology, such data are rarely published in their entirety, cause of their size and complexity. Thus, they are not available to the scientific community for inspection or re-evaluation. It is in this context that "volume data" are directly addressed in the specifications of Area 8.1 formation Infrastructures, under heading 8.1.1 where it reads "provision of macromolecular structural databases ... (atomic coordinates, volumes)".
The ability to organize volume data into a single well-structured database and to correlate volumes of similar specimens produced by different techniques with each other, together with the possibility to combine the data sets with information stored in other databases (for example those for protein sequences and atomic coordinates), will profoundly deepen our understanding of macromolecular assemblies, organelles, cells, and their mutual interactions. As an integral part of the BioImage database project, we will develop a flexible user interface to provide easy access to the data, as well as make available software tools for manipulating this information. The Bioimage database project is thus truly an infrastructure project, that will influence and support future research activities in many areas of molecular, structural, and cell biology. The seven proposing European laboratories provide a rich trans-disciplinary (and cultural) mixture of biological, technological and computational skills and knowledge, covering electron microscopy (Carazo and Engel), scanning probe microscopy (Engel), X-ray (Fita), light microscopy (Stelzer and Shotton), D graphics (SGI) and data base design and maintenance (EBI). The correlation of 3D electron microscopy and scanning probe microscopy images with atomic coordinates already receives special attention from the groups of Carazo, Engel and Fita. The important task of developing software tools will be facilitated by the partnership of Drs. Henn and Teschner from the CPB Technology Center of Silicon Graphics (Europe), while expertise in biological database organization is provided by the European BioInformatics Institute.
The BioImage database project will have a significant and lasting impact on many fields in biology by making it possible to access, inspect, and cross-correlate structural data in an unprecedented manner. This will be ensured by establishing robust protocols for the organization, maintenance, and use of volume data. Ten test users from leading European biological laboratories producing volume data will supply a variety of volume images for inclusion in the initial BioImage database, will evaluate the effectiveness of the volume handling tools, and (on behalf of the wider scientific community) will provide us with critical feedback concerning the general development of the database.
This project has the potential to influence future biological research, as it will provide possibilities to analyze and combine structural data at the molecular and cellular level in ways that have hitherto been impossible. In addition, we anticipate that it will stimulate developments in the commercial sector, particularly in two areas. The first one is the commercial development of sophisticated programs to search, organize and use the biological microscopic volumes contained within the database, extending the handling tools that we ourselves will produce.
This has been demonstrated by the numerous software packages developed to manipulate sequence and atomic coordinate data, once these became available. The second one is the production by publishing companies of specialist educational multimedia publications that include movies or 3D images from the BioImage database, or that make hyper-media links into it. We anticipate that demonstration publications of this nature will he launched during the BioImage database project.

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CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS
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Campus de la Universidad Autonoma de Madrid
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