The Functional RNA Database 3.0: databases to support mining and annotation of functional RNAs

Abstract

We developed a pair of databases that support two important tasks: annotation of anonymous RNA transcripts and discovery of novel non-coding RNAs. The database combo is called the Functional RNA Database and consists of two databases: a rewrite of the original version of the Functional RNA Database (fRNAdb) and the latest version of the UCSC GenomeBrowser for Functional RNA. The former is a sequence database equipped with a powerful search function and hosts a large collection of known/predicted non-coding RNA sequences acquired from existing databases as well as novel/predicted sequences reported by researchers of the Functional RNA Project. The latter is a UCSC Genome Browser mirror with large additional custom tracks specifically associated with non-coding elements. It also includes several functional enhancements such as a presentation of a common secondary structure prediction at any given genomic window < or =500 bp. Our GenomeBrowser supports user authentication and user-specific tracks. The current version of the fRNAdb is a complete rewrite of the former version, hosting a larger number of sequences and with a much friendlier interface. The current version of UCSC GenomeBrowser for Functional RNA features a larger number of tracks and richer features than the former version. The databases are available at http://www.ncrna.org/.