The OpenHelix Blog

The OpenHelix tutorial suite is sure to help current and new users to get up to speed on our site and its new features, and therefore get their results more quickly to support their research.

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) August 11, 2010

The creators of GeneMANIA have contracted with OpenHelix to provide comprehensive online training for the gene function prediction tool (http://genemania.org ).

GeneMANIA is a free public resource that offers a simple, intuitive web interface that shows the relationships between genes in a list and analyzes and extends the list to include other related genes. The web interface is backed by powerful analysis software and a large data warehouse containing extensive amounts of existing functional genomics data, and also includes Cytoscape Web, a web based advanced visualization tool to enable browsing of query results and creation of publication-ready figures.

“GeneMANIA will soon be updated to include significantly increased functionality,” according to Gary Bader and Quaid Morris, assistant professors in the Donnelly Centre (http://tdccbr.med.utoronto.ca/) and co-principal investigators for GeneMANIA. “OpenHelix based their tutorial on our development site, and even provided user feedback on our new features that resulted in improvements to our system. OpenHelix had very strong understanding of the GeneMANIA interface, which then translated into a powerful learning resource. The OpenHelix tutorial suite is sure to help current and new users to get up to speed on our site and its new features, and therefore get their results more quickly to support their research.”

The new training initiatives include a free online tutorial suite on GeneMANIA. The online narrated tutorial (http://www.openhelix.com/genemania ), which runs in just about any browser, can be viewed from beginning to end or navigated using chapters and forward and backward sliders. The approximately 60 minute tutorial highlights and explains the features and functionality needed to start using GeneMANIA effectively. The tutorial can be used by new users to introduce them to GeneMANIA, for previous users to view new features and functionality, or simply as a reference tool to understand specific features.

In addition to the tutorial, GeneMANIA users can also access useful training materials including the animated PowerPoint slides used as a basis for the tutorial, a suggested script for the slides, slide handouts, and exercises. This can save a tremendous amount time and effort for teachers and professors to create classroom content.

“GeneMANIA is an innovative, hypothesis generating tool that can be used to extend a given gene list to find related genes sharing similar functions,” said OpenHelix founder and President Dr. Mary Mangan. “OpenHelix is excited to contribute to furthering the field of gene function prediction by assisting researchers in effectively and efficiently using such a critical tool.”

Users can view the tutorials and download the free materials at www.openhelix.com .

In addition to the GeneMANIA tutorial suite, OpenHelix offers over 90 tutorial suites on some of the most powerful and popular bioinformatics and genomics tools available on the web. Some of the tutorials suites are freely available through support from the resource providers. The whole catalog of tutorials suites is available through a subscription. Users can view the tutorials and download the free materials at www.openhelix.com .

About GeneMANIA
GeneMANIA (www.genemania.org ) is a free web-based prediction tool that finds other genes that are related to a set of input genes, using a very large set of functional association data. Association data include protein and genetic interactions, pathways, co-expression, co-localization and protein domain similarity. You can use GeneMANIA to find new members of a pathway or complex, find additional genes you may have missed in your screen or find new genes with a specific function, such as protein kinases. Your question is defined by the set of genes you input. If members of your gene list make up a protein complex, GeneMANIA will return more potential members of the protein complex. If you enter a gene list, GeneMANIA will return connections between your genes, within the selected datasets.

GeneMANIA is actively developed at the University of Toronto, in the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, in the labs of Gary Bader and Quaid Morris, with input from an independent scientific advisory board. GeneMANIA development is funded by Genome Canada, through the Ontario Genomics Institute (2007-OGI-TD-05).

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com ) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Comprehensive tutorials on the publicly available NCBI resources enable researchers to quickly and effectively use these invaluable resources.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) June 8, 2010 – OpenHelix today announced the availability of three updated tutorials on NCBI resources.

The National Center for Biotechnology Information, NCBI, is home to many of the most commonly used publicly available databases and tools in molecular biology today. They house such popular and widely used databases as GenBank, PubMed, GEO, Entrez Gene, Entrez Protein, and more. NCBI also produces, maintains and updates a variety of tools, like the large family of BLAST sequence similarity searching tools and the Entrez search and retrieval tools. In addition, they provide an extensive variety of services for education, news dissemination and different types of data submission. This tutorial presents a broad overview of NCBI’s databases, tools, educational resources and data submission protocols. In addition to an update on this overview, OpenHelix has updated both it’s PubMed and GEO tutorials. PubMed is the premiere search engine for biomedical literature. More than 18 million citations from life science journals can be searched through this free service. The Gene Expression Omnibus, or GEO, is a valuable resource designed to store high-throughput gene expression and molecular abundance data. These three tutorials, in conjunction with the many other OpenHelix up-to-date tutorials on NCBI resources such as BLAST, Entrez, dbSNP, MMDB, Viral resoruces, MapViewer and others will give you a set of training resources to help be efficient and effective at accessing and analyzing genome data.

The tutorial suites, available through an annual OpenHelix subscription, contain an online, narrated, multimedia tutorial, which runs in just about any browser connected to the web, along with slides with full script, handouts and exercises. With the tutorials, researchers can quickly learn to effectively and efficiently use these resources. The scripts, handouts and other materials can also be used as a reference or for training others.

These tutorials will teach users:

NCBI Overview

*to understand the basic structure of NCBI and its different types of resources
*to navigate NCBI to find the databases and analysis tools you need
*what types of educational resources are available at NCBI
*basic data submission procedures and background information
*how to search the entire NCBI site, as well as just the subset of Entrez databases

PubMed

*basic, advanced, and Boolean search methods
*additional searching methods like the Entrez Global query and the MeSH query
*tips to understand the visual cues and displays
*to use My NCBI to customize your results and save searches which can be run and emailed regularly

Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO)

*efficient ways to query GEO for specific genes or experimental designs
*how to navigate through GEO output displays to find the specific information you want
*how to navigate GEO’s complex data architecture to search GEO by specific record types

To find out more about these and over 85 other tutorial suites visit the OpenHelix Catalog and OpenHelix. Or visit the OpenHelix Blog for up-to-date information on genomics and genomics resources.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Comprehensive tutorial on the publicly available GeneTests resource enable researchers to quickly and effectively use this invaluable resource.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) May 25, 2010 – OpenHelix today announced the availability of an updated tutorial suite on GeneTests.

GeneTests is an integrated resource designed to provide access to current genetic testing and other clinical genetics information. The GeneTests resource includes the Laboratory Directory database, an international directory that identifies the location of clinical laboratories offering genetic testing; and GeneReviews, a collection of up-to-date, comprehensive disease-specific overviews which include clinical descriptions, diagnosis, management, molecular genetics, current genetic testing, and genetic counseling. This tutorials, in conjunction with OpenHelix tutorials on OMIM, dbSNP, GVS, HapMap and many others will give the medical researcher or clinician a set of training resources to help be efficient and effective at accessing and analyzing genomic variation and biomedical data.

The tutorial suites, available through an annual OpenHelix subscription, contain an online, narrated, multimedia tutorial, which runs in just about any browser connected to the web, along with slides with full script, handouts and exercises. With the tutorials, researchers can quickly learn to effectively and efficiently use these resources. The scripts, handouts and other materials can also be used as a reference or for training others.

This tutorials will teach users:
*to perform disease-specific searches and navigate the GeneTests site
*to understand the GeneReviews and Laboratory Directory Displays
*to access additional searches to query the GeneReviews and Laboratory Directory databases by disease feature, gene and protein specific searches, and more
*to identify U.S. and international laboratories offering molecular genetic testing for specific disorders, use the Clinical Directory to locate genetics professionals and services, and investigate additional educational and other resources

To find out more about these and over 90 other tutorial suites visit the OpenHelix Catalog and OpenHelix. Or visit the OpenHelix Blog for up-to-date information on genomics and genomics resources.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Researchers, faculty, students and staff at Washington University can now efficiently and effectively learn to use bioinformatics and genomics resources with the extensive tutorial suite catalog from OpenHelix.

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) April 26, 2010 — Bernard Becker Medical Library at Washington University School of Medicine has purchased a subscription to OpenHelix (www.openhelix.com) giving faculty, students and staff access to over 90 tutorial suites on bioinformatics and genomic resources.

With OpenHelix tutorials, Becker Library offers the Washington University community a quick and effective way to learn about the most powerful and popular genomics and bioinformatics databases and resources. These tutorials cover many types of resources including protein databases, bioinformatics analysis tools, model organism databases, SNP databases, comparative genomics, pathway and interaction resources and much more. “We’re thrilled that we are able to provide such a fantastic suite of resources to our research community,” said Kristi Holmes, PhD bioinformaticist at Becker Medical Library. “These tutorials are the perfect compliment to the instruction and consultation services offered by our Bioinformatics@Becker program.”

These tutorials are the perfect compliment to the instruction and consultation services offered by our Bioinformatics@Becker program

The online narrated tutorials, which run in just about any browser, can be viewed from beginning to end or navigated using chapters and forward and backward sliders. The approximately 60 minute tutorials highlight and explain the features and functionality needed to start using the resources effectively. The tutorial can be used by new users to introduce them to a resource, or by previous users to view new features and functionality, or simply as a reference tool to understand specific features.

In addition to the tutorial, users also have access to useful training materials including the animated PowerPoint slides used as a basis for the tutorial, suggested script for the slides, slide handouts, and exercises. This can save a tremendous amount of time and effort for teachers and professors creating classroom content.

“It is difficult, and certainly cost prohibitive, for university Libraries to create and provide training on the many critical genomic resources available,” said Scott Lathe, Chief Executive Officer of OpenHelix. “With an OpenHelix subscription, Washington University provides an efficient and effective training solution for their researchers.”

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Comprehensive tutorials on the publicly available Ensembl and an overview of genome browsers enable researchers to quickly and effectively use these invaluable resources.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) April 26, 2010 — OpenHelix today announced the availability of a new tutorial on Ensembl, and an updated tutorial suite on the Overview of Genome Browsers.

Ensembl is a genome browser to visualize and analyze human and many other species genomes. Though Ensembl recently updated the browser software, many species genome browsers still use the older versions of the browser. OpenHelix has a tutorial on the latest version, and has now created a new tutorial, Ensembl Legacy, to acquaint researchers with the older versions they might encounter. Overview of Genome Browsers is an updated tutorials which introduces researchers to some of the more popular genome browsers including Ensembl, Map Viewer, UCSC Genome Browser, the Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) browser and the GBrowse software. These two tutorials, in conjunction with larger, in-depth OpenHelix tutorials on UCSC Genome and Table Browsers, GBrowse. IMG, IMG/M, Ensembl and MapViewer and others will give you a set of training resources to help be efficient and effective at accessing and analyzing genome data.

The tutorial suites, available through an annual OpenHelix subscription, contain an online, narrated, multimedia tutorial, which runs in just about any browser connected to the web, along with slides with full script, handouts and exercises. With the tutorials, researchers can quickly learn to effectively and efficiently use these resources. The scripts, handouts and other materials can also be used as a reference or for training others.

These tutorials will teach users:

Ensembl Legacy

*about the Ensembl software and its developers
*how to access older versions of the browser from the Ensembl archive
*the differences and similarities between versions
*about some example installations of Ensembl at other databases

Overview of Genome Browsers

*where to find these 5 useful tools
*an overview of the organization and display features
*some guidance on how or why to choose a given browser for your research needs
To find out more about these and over 85 other tutorial suites visit the OpenHelix Catalog and OpenHelix. Or visit the OpenHelix Blog for up-to-date information on genomics and genomics resources.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Oregon State University and Cornell University, creators of the Gramene Resource for Comparative Plant Genomics, partner with OpenHelix to offer online training on genomic resources to encourage diversity in science.

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) April 22, 2010 — The creators of the Gramene Resource for Comparative Grass Genomics and OpenHelixannounce the availability of scholarships to colleges and universities serving underrepresented minorities for full access to over 85 online tutorial suites on bioinformatics and genomics resources. The program is partially funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

“An ongoing goal for Gramene, our institutions, and the NSF, has been to provide opportunities for advancement and training to underrepresented groups in science,” said Dr. Doreen Ware, of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Principal Investigator of Gramene, “So we are excited to be able to offer individual and institution scholarships to an extensive and valuable catalog of online training on genomics resources.”

…we are excited to be able to offer individual and institution scholarships to an extensive and valuable catalog of online training on genomics resources.

Recipients will have access to the OpenHelix catalog of tutorial suites on a wide range of bioinformatics and genomics resources, including Gramene, PlantGDB, NCBI tools such as Entrez Gene, BLAST and PubMed and many more. A full catalog of tutorial suites is available at http://www.openhelix.com/cgi/tutorials.cgi.

Each tutorial suite includes a 45-60 minute, online, self-run, narrated introductory tutorial on how to use a specific resource. The tutorial suite also includes PowerPoint slides, slide handouts and exercises which can be used as reference material or to build classroom content.

“The study of genomics has affected just about every area of life sciences, so learning how to access and interpret genomic data is critical to research success,” said Scott Lathe, Chief Executive Officer of OpenHelix, “With the convenience and broad accessibility of online training, we hope these scholarships will help in leveling access to this important training and further the potential and ongoing careers of the recipients.”

Institutions can apply for a scholarship for access to the tutorials at http://www.openhelix.com/cgi/scholarships.cgi. The scholarships are available to to minority serving colleges and universities. Underrepresented in science means those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in biology research relative to their numbers in the general population. Individual scholarships are available to U.S undergraduates, graduate students, post-doctoral students, faculty and staff. Application deadline is June 30, 2010 and a limited number of scholarships are available.

About Gramene
Extensive research over the past two decades has shown significant conservation of gene order within large segments of linkage groups in agriculturally important grasses such as rice, maize, sorghum, barley, oats, wheat, and rye. Grass genomes are substantially colinear at both large and short scales, opening the possibility of using syntenic relationships to rapidly isolate and characterize homologues in maize, wheat, barley and sorghum.

As an information resource, Gramene’s purpose is to provide added value to data sets available within the public sector to facilitate researchers’ ability to understand plant genomes and take advantage of genomic sequence known in one species for identifying and understanding corresponding genes, pathways and phenotypes in other plant species.

Current work is being supported by the NSF Plant Genome Research Resource grant award #0703908.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides the genomics knowledge you need when you need it. OpenHelix provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

NIH scientists and staff can now efficiently and effectively learn to use bioinformatics and genomics resources with the extensive tutorial suite catalog from OpenHelix.

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) April 19, 2010 — The National Institutes of Health Library (www.nihlibrary.nih.gov) has purchased a subscription toOpenHelix (www.openhelix.com) giving NIH scientists and staff access to over 90 tutorial suites on bioinformatics and genomic resources.

With OpenHelix tutorials, NIH now offers their employees a quick and effective way to learn about the most powerful and popular genomics and bioinformatics databases and resources. These tutorials cover many types of resources including protein databases, bioinformatics analysis tools, model organism databases, SNP databases, comparative genomics, pathway and interaction resources and much more.

The online narrated tutorials, which run in just about any browser, can be viewed from beginning to end or navigated using chapters and forward and backward sliders. The approximately 60 minute tutorials highlight and explain the features and functionality needed to start using the resources effectively. The tutorial can be used by new users to introduce them to a resource, or by previous users to view new features and functionality, or simply as a reference tool to understand specific features.

In addition to the tutorial, users also have access to useful training materials including the animated PowerPoint slides used as a basis for the tutorial, suggested script for the slides, slide handouts, and exercises. This can save a tremendous amount of time and effort for teachers and professors creating classroom content.

“It is difficult, and certainly cost prohibitive, for research institutions themselves to create and provide training on the many critical genomic resources available.” said Scott Lathe, Chief Executive Officer of OpenHelix, “NIH uses the OpenHelix subscription to provide an efficient and effective training solution for their researchers.”

About the National Institutes of Health
Composed of 27 Institutes and Centers, the NIH provides leadership and financial support to researchers in every state and throughout the world.

For more than a century, the National Institutes of Health has played an important role in improving the health of the nation. The NIH traces its roots to 1887 with the creation of the Laboratory of Hygiene at the Marine Hospital in Staten Island, NY.

NIH is the steward of medical and behavioral research for the Nation. Its mission is science in pursuit of fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to extend healthy life and reduce the burdens of illness and disability.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs.

Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

The Protein Data Bank (PDB) bioinformatics resource partners with OpenHelix to provide online tutorial suite, Quick Reference Cards, and other training and outreach programs.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) April 13, 2010 — The Research Collaboratory for Structural Biology (RCSB) Protein Data Bank (PDB), has partnered with OpenHelixTM to provide comprehensive training and outreach programs for its free, web-based resource (www.pdb.org).

The RCSB PDB provides a variety of tools and resources to use to study biological macromolecules. The PDB is the single worldwide repository of experimentally-determined 3D biological structures of proteins, nucleic acids and complex assemblies. As a member of the wwPDB, the RCSB PDB curates and annotates PDB data, and presents basic and advanced search, display and visualization methods to access these data.

“RCSB PDB is a premier resource with a long history of providing researchers with excellent data and tools,” said OpenHelix founder and President Dr. Mary Mangan. “We are proud to be able to contribute to the effort to increase users’ access and understanding of these tools.”

The new training tools (at http://www.openhelix.com/pdb) include an online narrated tutorial that demonstrates: basic and advanced searches, how to generate reports, the different options for exploring individual structures, and many of the research and educational resources and tools available at the RCSB PDB. The approximately 60-minute tutorial, which runs in just about any browser, can be viewed from beginning to end or navigated using chapters and forward and backward sliders.

In addition to the tutorial, RCSB PDB users can access useful training materials including the animated PowerPoint slides used as a basis for the tutorial, suggested script for the slides, slide handouts, and exercises. This can save a tremendous amount time and effort for teachers and professors to create classroom content.

OpenHelix also has created free Quick Reference Cards for the RCSB PDB. The Quick Reference Card highlights features found on the home page, as well as search strategies, features, and functionalities. The cards can be ordered at www.openhelix.com. Thirty cards can be ordered at a time and shipping is free within the United States.

“We are pleased to team with OpenHelix to offer these new training materials alongside their other great bioinformatics resource tutorials,” said Helen M. Berman, Director of the RCSB PDB. “The suite of materials can introduce new users to the RCSB PDB and serve as a quick reference for our experts.”

Users can view the tutorials and download the free materials at www.openhelix.com.

About the RCSB PDB
The RCSB Protein Data Bank (www.pdb.org), administered by the Research Collaboratory for Structural Bioinformatics (RCSB), supports scientific research and education worldwide by providing an essential resource of information about biomolecular structures. These molecules of life are found in all organisms, from bacteria and plants to animals and humans.

The RCSB PDB member institutions jointly manage the project: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and the San Diego Supercomputer Center and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of California, San Diego.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

Free tutorial and training materials available for the Structural Genomics Knowledgebase bionformatics resource

Working with OpenHelix to provide online training materials and increased visibility is an effective way to add to our efforts

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) March 18, 2010 — The Structural Genomics Knowledgebase(SGKB), a one-stop shop for information about proteins hosted at Rutgers University, has partnered with OpenHelixTM to provide free comprehensive training and outreach programs for its online protein “portal” located at http://kb.psi-structuralgenomics.org.

The SGKB is a free, comprehensive resource produced through a collaboration between the National Institutes of Health’s Protein Structure Initiative and Nature Publishing Group. The PSI SGKB contains genetic, structural, functional and experimental information about proteins that is easily accessible through a variety of reports and displays. The portal also includes links to many additional resources.

“Structural genomics is fast emerging as an essential tool in expanding our knowledge of the role of proteins in biology and in disease,” said OpenHelix founder and CSO Dr. Warren Lathe. “OpenHelix is excited to contribute to furthering this field by assisting researchers in effectively and efficiently using this powerful resource.”

The new training initiatives include a free online tutorial suite on how to use/search/find/etc. the SGKB.

The online narrated tutorial runs in just about any browser and can be navigated in a number of ways. In about 60 minutes, the tutorial highlights and explains the features and functionality needed to start using the SGKB effectively. The tutorial can be used by new users to introduce them to the protein portal, by previous users to view new features and functionality or simply as a reference tool to understand specific features.

In addition to the tutorial, SGKB users can also access useful training materials, including the animated PowerPoint slides used as a basis for the tutorial, suggested talking points for the slides, slide handouts and exercises. This can save a tremendous amount time and effort for educators looking to create classroom content.

Users can view the tutorials and download the free materials at http://www.openhelix.com/sgkb .

OpenHelix also has created a free Quick Reference Card for the SGKB. The Quick Reference card highlights search strategies, features and functionality. The cards can be ordered in packs of 30 from www.openhelix.com, and shipping is free within the United States.

“The SGKB sets itself apart by incorporating so many different types of biological data (genetic, structural, theoretical, functional, protocol, etc.) that is really is a ‘one-stop shop’ for a broad range of biological and biomedical fields. The challenge for training and outreach is to make this data accessible and understandable to scientists across different disciplines,” said Dr. Helen Berman, head of the SGKB. “Working with OpenHelix to provide online training materials and increased visibility is an effective way to add to our efforts.”

In addition to the SGKB tutorial suite, OpenHelix offers nearly 90 tutorial suites on some of the most powerful and popular bioinformatics and genomics tools available on the web. Some of the tutorial suites are freely available through support from the resource providers. The whole catalog of tutorial suites is available through a subscription. Users can view the tutorials and download the free materials atwww.openhelix.com.

About the PSI
The Protein Structure Initiative (PSI, http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Initiatives/PSI/), which is supported by the National Institutes of Health, is a federal, university and industry effort aimed at dramatically reducing the costs and lessening the time it takes to determine a three-dimensional protein structure. The long-range goal of the PSI is to make the three-dimensional atomic-level structures of most proteins easily obtainable from knowledge of their corresponding DNA sequences. The PSI strives to gain biological insights from new structures and to help the broad biomedical research community make use of PSI research findings.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.

University of Miami’s Center for Computational Science subscribes to OpenHelix tutorial suites for their online Bioinformatics Integrated Services (iBIS) portal.

Seattle WA (PRWEB) March 15, 2010 — The Center for Computational Science (CCS) at University of Miami (http://www.ccs.miami.edu/index.html) and OpenHelix (www.openhelix.com) announced the integration and availability of over 85 tutorial suites on bioinformatics and genomic resources to the Center’s Bioinformatics Integrated Services (iBIS) portal.

The iBIS portal (http://bio.ccs.miami.edu/ibis/), currently in phase one, offers a comprehensive list of genomic databases, protein structure databases, clinical genetics databases, as well as numerous software tools for the analysis of gene expression, regulation, signaling and metabolic pathways, genomics, proteomics, and systems biology. In addition, the portal allows access to a suite of tools and databases available to University of Miami faculty, staff, and students.

Once they find a resource, it is essential we provided them the training needed to effectively use it—and OpenHelix tutorials were the obvious choice.

With OpenHelix tutorials, iBIS offers a quick and effective way to learn about many of these powerful and popular databases and resources. The narrated tutorials run in just about any browser and show the user how to use the features and functionality of the resources.

“Our mission was to provide a comprehensive, user-friendly, and customizable interface for researchers to find the resource they need,” said Dr. Sawsan Khuri, Bioinformatics Senior Scientist at the Center, “but once they find a resource, it is essential we provided them the training needed to effectively use it—and OpenHelix tutorials were the obvious choice.”

The basic functionality of iBIS is available to all, however access to local software and databases and to the tutorials is limited to those at the University of Miami. Over 80 tutorials, including PowerPoint slides, slide handouts and exercises which can be used as reference material or to build classroom content, can be accessed by others through a subscription atwww.openhelix.com.

“It is difficult, and certainly cost prohibitive, for every university to create and provide training on the many critical genomic resources available” said Scott Lathe, Chief Executive Officer of OpenHelix, “the Center found a great solution to their training needs in licensing our content for integration into their portal. We’re certainly proud to be part of the iBIS platform.”

About the Center for Computational Science
The University of Miami Center for Computational Science (CCS) actively engages in interdisciplinary research to solve the complex scientific and technological problems of modern society. The CCS strives for excellence in research, teaching and service covering the fundamental, as well as, applied aspects of computational science.

Faculty and staff at the University of Miami Center for Computational Science (CCS) harness computing power, applied mathematics, and application sciences – such as physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, and earth sciences – to address the most pressing challenges of our generation. With programs in bioinformatics, physical sciences, chemoinformatics, data mining, and data visualization, the Center facilitates collaborative projects between departments and institutes. Engineers and scientists use the burgeoning field of computational science to manage huge volumes of data rapidly and economically to construct and test models of intricate phenomena.

About OpenHelix
OpenHelix, LLC, (www.openhelix.com) provides a bioinformatics and genomics search and training portal, giving researchers one place to find and learn how to use resources and databases on the web. The OpenHelix Search portal searches hundreds of resources, tutorial suites and other material to direct researchers to the most relevant resources and OpenHelix training materials for their needs. Researchers and institutions can save time, budget and staff resources by leveraging a subscription to nearly 100 online tutorial suites available through the portal. More efficient use of the most relevant resources means quicker and more effective research.