MacVector enables you to use the BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) heuristic search algorithm to search sequence databases available on the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) server, to find sequences that are similar to either nucleic acid or protein query sequences. Currently, homologs to a query sequence can be determined using the following search types:
Batch BLAST allows you to submit a bunch of sequences to individual BLAST searches and present the data in a single report.
Batch BLAST uses the Project Manager to store the query sequences and submit them to BLAST searches. Batch BLAST currently will only submit nucleic acid sequences to a search. For protein sequences you can only submit individual sequences.
Displaying Batch BLAST results.
Batch BLAST will produce a tabbed results window.
- The first tab is a typical BLAST results table. If you click on the blue highlighted hit name it will retrieve and open the hit.
- The second tab show the query sequence name and the standard BLAST result description of the hit sequence. The SOURCE column will show the organism that this hit was found and the FEATURES column shows a feature from a list of all the Features present on the best hit where it overlaps the query sequence. There is an order to the search and display of the feature(s) - CDS, gene then RNA. If a segment has gene and RNA, only the gene features are listed. The "name" of the feature uses the same rules as displaying a feature in the Map tab i.e. based on the qualifiers.
- The alignments tab will show the top five alignments against the query for the currently selected hit.
How to submit multiple sequences to Batch BLAST.
- go to FILE | NEW | ASSEMBLY PROJECT
- Click ADD SEQS and add all your query sequences.
- Select all your query sequences
- Choose DATABASE | Online search for similar sequences (BLAST)
- Choose the database to search and other settings. These are all used for every sequence in the search.
- The results will be displayed in three tabs in the tabbed Results window.
Related Topics.
Using BLAST searches
Displaying BLAST search results
Retrieving matching sequences
Auto Annotation via BLAST.
