WormBase: expanding the reference resource for helminth research

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Many developments in modern medicine are based on the enormous progress made over the last 50 years in our understanding of how our genes work. Many diseases are caused by genes malfunctioning in some way, and understanding the function of genes allows to design diagnostic tools and treatments against specific malfunctions. Much of the research that has led to this progress is difficult to do in humans. Because all animals are related by evolution, study of simple animals helps to understand human biology. Certain key model organisms have been the focus of intensive study. One of these is the tiny roundworm, or nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans. C. elegans research has been supported by the MRC for over 50 years, leading to two Nobel prizes, and is a key contributor to our understanding of basic processes such as cell death and ageing. In addition to its relevance for understanding human biology, research on C. elegans is particularly important to our understanding of the biology of parasitic worms. Globally, more than one billion people are infected with parasitic nematodes, including filarial nematodes, such as Onchocerca that causes river blindness, and Brugia that causes elephantiasis; intestinal nematodes such as hookworms, whipworms and giant roundworms. Typically infections are associated with and promote poverty. Genetic research has been revolutionized by obtaining the complete DNA sequence (the genome) of the organism being studied, which contains all the gene sequences. C. elegans was the first animal to have its genome sequenced and now major programmes are collecting genome sequences for parasitic species. To use genome sequences and all the new information about genes requires information resources that tie together DNA information with experimental data, and relate corresponding genes across animals. This application will support the development of WormBase, the reference information resource for all genomic and biological data for C. elegans that is essential for fundamental research using this model organism. The application will also support the expansion of WormBase to include the curation of genomic and experimental information for increasing numbers of parasitic nematodes, and an expansion in scope to include Schistosoma mansoni, a parasitic flatworm. Research into both types of parasitic worms (flatworms and nematodes) has much in common despite their evolutionary distance and WormBase will now support fundamental research in both these areas. By relating parasitology and basic science research, WormBase is uniquely placed to enable community-wide exploitation of data emerging for parasites by applying information, technological infrastructure, and curatorial expertise developed for C. elegans.