Protein Information Resource
Encyclopedia
The Protein Information Resource (PIR), located at Georgetown University
Medical Center (GUMC), is an integrated public bioinformatics
resource to support genomic
and proteomic
research, and scientific studies
information. Prior to that, the NBRF compiled the first comprehensive collection of macromolecular sequences in the Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure, published from 1965-1978 under the editorship of Margaret Dayhoff. Dr. Dayhoff and her research group pioneered in the development of computer methods for the comparison of protein sequences, for the detection of distantly related sequences and duplications within sequences, and for the inference of evolutionary histories from alignments of protein sequences.
Dr. Winona Barker and Dr. Robert Ledley assumed leadership of the project after the untimely death of Dr. Dayhoff in 1983. In 1999, Dr. Cathy H. Wu joined NBRF, and later on GUMC, to head the bioinformatics efforts of PIR, and has served first as Principal Investigator and, since 2001, as Director.
For four decades, PIR has provided many protein databases and analysis tools freely accessible to the scientific community, including the Protein Sequence Database (PSD), the first international database (see PIR-International), which grew out of Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure.
In 2002, PIR along with its international partners, EBI (European Bioinformatics Institute
) and SIB (Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics
), were awarded a grant from NIH to create UniProt
, a single worldwide database of protein sequence and function, by unifying the PIR-PSD, Swiss-Prot, and TrEMBL databases.
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
Medical Center (GUMC), is an integrated public 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...
resource to support genomic
Genomics
Genomics is a discipline in genetics concerning the study of the genomes of organisms. The field includes intensive efforts to determine the entire DNA sequence of organisms and fine-scale genetic mapping efforts. The field also includes studies of intragenomic phenomena such as heterosis,...
and proteomic
Proteomics
Proteomics is the large-scale study of proteins, particularly their structures and functions. Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, as they are the main components of the physiological metabolic pathways of cells. The term "proteomics" was first coined in 1997 to make an analogy with...
research, and scientific studies
History
PIR was established in 1984 by the National Biomedical Research Foundation (NBRF) as a resource to assist researchers in the identification and interpretation of protein sequenceProtein sequencing
Protein sequencing is a technique to determine the amino acid sequence of a protein, as well as which conformation the protein adopts and the extent to which it is complexed with any non-peptide molecules...
information. Prior to that, the NBRF compiled the first comprehensive collection of macromolecular sequences in the Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure, published from 1965-1978 under the editorship of Margaret Dayhoff. Dr. Dayhoff and her research group pioneered in the development of computer methods for the comparison of protein sequences, for the detection of distantly related sequences and duplications within sequences, and for the inference of evolutionary histories from alignments of protein sequences.
Dr. Winona Barker and Dr. Robert Ledley assumed leadership of the project after the untimely death of Dr. Dayhoff in 1983. In 1999, Dr. Cathy H. Wu joined NBRF, and later on GUMC, to head the bioinformatics efforts of PIR, and has served first as Principal Investigator and, since 2001, as Director.
For four decades, PIR has provided many protein databases and analysis tools freely accessible to the scientific community, including the Protein Sequence Database (PSD), the first international database (see PIR-International), which grew out of Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure.
In 2002, PIR along with its international partners, EBI (European Bioinformatics Institute
European Bioinformatics Institute
The European Bioinformatics Institute is a centre for research and services in bioinformatics, and is part of European Molecular Biology Laboratory...
) and SIB (Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics
Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics
The Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics is an academic not-for-profit foundation which federates bioinformatics activities throughout Switzerland...
), were awarded a grant from NIH to create UniProt
UniProt
UniProt is a comprehensive, high-quality and freely accessible database of protein sequence and functional information, many of which are derived from genome sequencing projects...
, a single worldwide database of protein sequence and function, by unifying the PIR-PSD, Swiss-Prot, and TrEMBL databases.