New 1kG, dbNSFP, and ESP6500 Annotation Tracks and Associated Filters

         July 16, 2012

SVS 7.6.7 features new tools for filtering sequencing data based on functional predictions and allele frequencies. To complement these new features, new annotations tracks have been uploaded to our data server and are now available for our customers! Below you will find descriptions of the new tools and the related annotations track(s).

“Easy-to-Use” SNP & Variation Suite Assists John Curtin, PhD in Uncovering Genetic Associations for Asthma and Allergies

         July 10, 2012

Dr. John Curtin is a Lecturer in Functional Genomics at the University of Manchester where he works with a large team studying the development of asthma in a birth cohort. This group has received data on study subjects periodically for over a decade including before birth. Given how much data there is, data management is a big deal to Dr…. Read more »

What is Bioinformatic Filtering?

         June 29, 2012

Recently I gave a presentation on bioinformatic filtering: the process of using quality scores, annotation databases, and functional prediction scores to intelligently and quickly reduce your variant search space. View the recording here» In this webcast, I mention that filtering is something we have been doing for a long time, and that there are some great examples that use exome… Read more »

New Analysis and Spreadsheet Manipulation Tools in SVS!

         June 28, 2012

The script development team at Golden Helix has been hard at work these past few months and this means several new and exciting tools for our SVS customers!  The scripts featured in this blog post vary in function, from expanding the analytical options currently offered in SVS to transforming and editing spreadsheets.  As always, we invite you to visit our… Read more »

New Technical Support Bulletins (Forthcoming!), and a Known Bug with Filter Samples by Call Rate

         June 27, 2012

As Product Quality Manager, I have been spending quite a bit of time lately thinking about the best way to communicate with our Golden Helix customers with regards to product quality and customer support issues. Most of our customers at this point have already seen several emails from me this year! Email is certainly one way to get an announcement… Read more »

Exaggerating your number of controls or being precise? “Variant not found in over 10,000 chromosomes from EVS…”

         June 22, 2012

Reading through the last release of AJHG I saw a couple papers mention that the putative rare variant they were investigating was “not present in over 10,000 control chromosomes from the EVS”. My first reaction was, “What? Do they mean the NHLBI 5400 Exome Sequencing Project? They only have 5,400 exomes not over 10,000! I wonder if there is some… Read more »

Admixture in Reference Populations: 1000 Genomes Uses African Americans in African Reference Group

         June 22, 2012

Today I ran into an interesting fact about how a prolifically used catalog of population controls classifies African Americans with potential impacts on research outcomes. The 1000 Genomes Project is arguably our best common set of controls used in genomic studies. They recently finished what was termed as “Phase 1” of the project, and they have been releasing full sets… Read more »

Have We Wasted 7 Years and $100 Million Dollars on GWAS Studies?

         June 21, 2012

Type 2 Diabetes, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Obesity, Chrohn’s Diseases and Coronary Heart Disease are examples of common, chronic diseases that have a significant genetic component. It should be no surprise that these diseases have been the target of much genetic research. Yet over the past decade, the tools of our research efforts have failed to unravel the complete biological architecture of… Read more »

Agrigenomic Researcher at U.C. Davis, Gonzalo Rincon, DVM, and Colleagues Publish 14 Articles and Obtain 2 Patents Using SVS

         June 13, 2012

Editor’s Note: This case study was written while Dr. Gonzalo Rincon was with the University of California, Davis. Dr. Rincon is now working as a Principal Investigator in Animal Genetics at Zoetis. Gonzalo Rincon, DVM is a Project Scientist in the Medrano Lab, part of the Department of Animal Science, at the University of California, Davis. While the lab works… Read more »

Why You Should Care About Segmental Duplications

         June 6, 2012

My work in the GHI analytical services department gives me the opportunity to handle data from a variety of sources.  I have learned over time that every genotyping platform has its own personality.  Every time we get data from a new chip, I tend to learn something new about the quirks of genotyping technology.  I usually discover these quirks the… Read more »

Is Free Software Really Free?

         May 23, 2012

The prevalence of open-source bioinformatic tools in the genetic research space is enormous. According to The North Shore LIJ Research Institute, there are over 500 genetic analysis software packages – the great majority of which are free – as of August 2010. Open-source tools are incredibly important in genetics. They allow new methodologies to be created and expanded. They tie… Read more »

How SVS Treats Gender in Calculating Genotype Statistics

         May 9, 2012

Recently several customers have asked how SNP & Variation Suite (SVS) treats gender when calculating genotype statistics. In this blog post, I will cover SVS’ current capabilities, what we have available through Python scripts, and what is coming in the near future. We thank all of our customers who have inquired about these capabilities and have given us valuable feedback… Read more »

Researcher Uses SVS for Pharmacogenetic Associations for 10 Years

         April 11, 2012

Dr. Julia Pinsonneault is a Research Scientist at The Ohio State University where she works to find biomarkers that guide effective treatment. Published recently in Neuropsychopharmacology, Julia has found success using SVS to find novel associations that move her research forward. Usually managing 3-5 research projects at a time from various cohorts, she found time in her busy schedule this… Read more »

Analyzing PacBio Data with SNP & Variation Suite

         March 21, 2012

As most in the Golden Helix community are aware, SNP & Variation Suite (SVS) can handle all sorts of data including files from Affymetrix, Illumina, Agilent, and Complete Genomics with its powerful data management capabilities. Announced in February, SVS is now part of the Pacific Biosciences Partner Program and has the ability to analyze PacBio files.

Learning From Our GWAS Mistakes: From experimental design to scientific method

         March 7, 2012

This month Biostatistics published online an open access article I co-authored with Dr. Laura Black from Montana State University: “Learning From Our GWAS Mistakes: From Experimental Design To Scientific Method.” The paper version is expected to come out in the April 2012 issue. I’m hoping that you will take the time to read it. And I’m hoping you will violently… Read more »

New Features in SVS: Accounting for Sex Chromosomes and Filter Columns by Variant Type

         February 29, 2012

In the last couple of weeks, the SVS Script Repository has seen a handful of new additions.  This blog post highlights three new scripts, but as always, we welcome you to check out our repository regularly to enjoy the new and exciting functionality made possible by our Python integration in SVS! (To get these, or any other scripts, simply go… Read more »

Introducing SVS 7.6!

         February 15, 2012

It’s that time again! We here at Golden Helix are excited to announce SVS 7.6 with more features for DNA-Seq analysis, the addition of RNA-Seq functionality, reorganization of SVS into “packages” including two new ones, and the release of new plot types enabled by Matplotlib. It’s certainly been busy as we pack all this into the sixth installment of the… Read more »

Admixture and Blaine Bettinger

         January 25, 2012

Allow me to introduce you to Blaine Bettinger.  Blaine is a patent attorney who holds a PhD in Biochemistry with a concentration in genetics.  He is also a family history enthusiast who writes the Genetic Genealogist blog, where he gives commentary on applications of genomic science for advancing personal and family history research.  I first learned about Blaine last May… Read more »