Bioinformatics Resource Centers

The Bioinformatics Resource Centers (BRCs) are a group of five Internet-based research centers established in 2004 and funded by NIAID (the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.)[1] The BRCs were formed in response to the threats posed by emerging and re-emerging pathogens, particularly Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Category A, B, and C pathogens,[2] and their potential use in bioterrorism. The intention of NIAID in funding these bioinformatics centers is to assist researchers involved in the experimental characterization of such pathogens and the formation of drugs, vaccines, or diagnostic tools to combat them.

The main goals of the BRCs are as follows:

1) To create comprehensive databases of reliable, up-to-date bioinformatic data (genetic, proteomic, biochemical, or microbiological) related to the pathogens of interest;
2) To provide researchers with easy access to this data through Internet-based search and data retrieval user interfaces;
3) To provide researchers with relevant, state-of-the art computational tools for bioinformatic analysis of these data.

The five BRCs are supported by various institutions, both publicly and privately owned, throughout the USA and Canada. Each BRC focuses on a different group of pathogens. The Pathogen Portal serves as a common repository and provides summary information about and links into the BRCs.

Bioinformatics Resource Centers
Name Acrono name Contributing organization(s) Number of organisms covered Organisms covered (CDC Category)
Eukaryotic Pathogen Database Resources EuPathDB University of Pennsylvania

University of Georgia

 45 in 13 genera Crithidia (Other)

Cryptosporidium (B)
Encephalitozoon (Group I)
Entamoeba (B)
Enterocytozoon (Group I)
Giardia (B)
Leishmania (Other)
Neospora (Other)
Plasmodium (Other)
Theileria (Other)
Toxoplasma (B)
Trichomonas (Other)
Trypanosoma (Other)

Influenza Research Database IRD Northrop Grumman Information Technology

J. Craig Venter Institute
Vecna Technologies

1 Influenza Virus (flu) (C)
PathoSystems Resource Integration Center PATRIC Virginia Bioinformatics Institute

University of Chicago
National Centre for Text Mining

22 genera Bacillus (A)

Bartonella (Group I)
Borrelia (Group I)
Brucella (B)
Burkholderia (B)
Campylobacter (B)
Chlamydophila (B)
Clostridium (A)
Coxiella (B)
Ehrlichia (Group I)
Escherichia (B)
Francisella (A)
Helicobacter (Group I)
Listeria (B)
Mycobacterium (C)
Rickettsia (B, C)
Salmonella (B)
Shigella (B)
Staphylococcus (B)
Vibrio (B)
Yersinia (A, B)
Other Bacteria

Virus Pathogen Database and Analysis Resource ViPR Northrop Grumman Information Technology

J. Craig Venter Institute
Vecna Technologies

13 families Arenaviridae (A)

Bunyaviridae (A)
Filoviridae (A)
Flaviviridae (A)
Poxviridae (A)
Caliciviridae (B)
Togaviridae (B)
Hepatitis A virus (B)
Coronaviridae (C)
Paramyxoviridae (C)
Lyssavirus (C)
Hepatitis E
Herpesviridae
Reoviridae

VectorBase VB University of Notre Dame

European Bioinformatics Institute
Imperial College London

30 Anopheles gambiae (Other)

Anopheles species (x16) (Other)
Aedes aegypti (Other)
Biomphalaria glabrata (Other)
Culex quinquefasciatus (Other)
Glossina species (x5) (Other)
Ixodes scapularis (Other)
Lutzomyia longipalpis (Other)
Musca domestica (Other)
Pediculus humanus (Other)
Phlebotomus papatasi (Other)

Pathogen Portal none Virginia Bioinformatics Institute Data for 13 species:

Gene expression, proteomics

 Vaccinia (Other)

Variola (A)
Monkeypox (A)
Coronavirus (C)
Brucella abortus (B)
Bacillus anthracis (A)
Salmonella typhimurium (B)
Yersinia pestis (A)
Vibrio cholerae (B)
Cryptosporidium parvum (B)
Toxoplasma gondii (B)
Homo sapiens (Other)
Mus musculus (Other)

See also

References
  1. Overview, Bioinformatics Resource Centers Archived May 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), January 10, 2008.
  2. CDC Bioterrorism Agents and Diseases (By Category) Archived 2014-07-22 at the Wayback Machine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Department of Health and Human Services), accessed July 8, 2008.
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