Latest Integrated Microbial Genomes Data Management System Update Release

Version 2.4 of the Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) data management system, a resource provided to the scientific community for microbial genome data analysis, has now been released.

Hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI), IMG has built a following as reflected in the overwhelming response to IMG workshops offered in Spring 2008, now full. DOE JGI has added a fall session, September 15-19, 2008.

IMG 2.4's content has been updated with new microbial genomes from the Version 25 release of the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Reference Sequence (RefSeq). IMG 2.4 also contains a total of 3,637 genomes consisting of 818 bacterial, 50 archaeal, and 40 eukaryotic genomes; 2,042 viruses and bacterial phages; and 687 plasmids. Among these genomes, there are 3,334 finished and 303 draft genomes, of which 256 (185 finished and 71 draft) are genomes sequenced by DOE JGI.

The IMG native controlled vocabulary of functional terms and pathways has been extended to 4,148 terms and 524 pathways, with 546,169 genes characterized using IMG terms. Functional annotation of genomes in IMG has been further enhanced through the computation of fused genes and by filling in various RNA genes missing from the original genome data sets.

IMG's user interface has been reorganized and enhanced to improve ease of use. IMG's user manual, UsingIMG, has been revised and extended.

IMG is a collaborative effort between DOE JGI and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Biological Data Management and Technology Center (BDMTC). IMG is updated on a quarterly basis with new public and DOE JGI genomes. The next IMG update is scheduled for March, 2008.