Abstract

Exploring molecular networks using MONET ontology

Author(s): Jo�£o Paulo M�¼ller da Silva, Ney Lemke, Jos�© Carlos Mombach, Jos�© Guilherme Camargo de Souza, Marialva Sinigaglia and Renata Vieira

The description of the complex molecular network responsible for cell behavior requires new tools to integrate large quantities of experimental data in the design of biological information systems. These tools could be used in the characterization of these networks and in the formulation of relevant biological hypotheses. The building of an ontology is a crucial step because it integrates in a coherent framework the concepts necessary to accomplish such a task. We present MONET (molecular network), an extensible ontology and an architecture designed to facilitate the integration of data originating from different public databases in a single- and well-documented relational database, that is compatible with MONET formal definition. We also present an example of an application that can easily be implemented using these tools.

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