Genome Annotation for the Masses

每个生物携带的遗传信息就是它的基因组。以As、Cs、Gs和Ts的DNA序列的形式存储，1%到5%的基因组序列存在于基因中。这些基因包含用于完成特定任务的小型蛋白质机器的指令集，并最终决定生物体的形状、大小、行为、寿命和疾病易感性。现在，确定生物体的基因组序列很简单。但了解哪些基因对生物体的独特特征负责仍然具有挑战性。这特别是由于在基因组中正确找到基因并确定其序列的哪些部分编码蛋白质的困难。事实上，自动基因识别软件的表现很差，因此需要对每个潜在基因模型的证据进行目测检查和纠正。因此，即使是为一个小型研究项目准备数据也需要几个月的时间。幸运的是，有一个解决方案。数以千计的普通公众利用互联网贡献自己的时间来帮助像GalaxyZoo和Foldit这样的科学项目，无论是出于好奇心，还是为了帮助更大的利益，获得同行的认可，或者只是为了好玩。他们的贡献包括确定以前未知的星系类型和确定艾滋病蛋白的3D结构。拟议的项目使用了类似的方法来鼓励普通公众帮助识别基因组中的基因并完善它们的边界。我们正在构建一个游戏，在游戏中，贡献者使用模式识别技能来改进基因模型。投稿人将能够选择将他们的努力集中在特定物种(例如：蚂蚁、人类、大象)或研究主题(例如：癌症、免疫、寿命、味觉或气味感知、行为)上。他们将获得积分，从而获得同行的认可，并可能在科学出版物上得到承认，甚至获得经济补偿。因此，这个项目将使普通公众成员在享受乐趣的同时，帮助世界变得更美好，促进科学发现。

The hereditary information carried by each living thing is its genome. Stored in the form of the DNA sequences of As, Cs, Gs, and Ts, between 1 and 5% of the genome sequence consists in genes. These genes contain instruction sets for small protein machines that accomplish specific tasks and ultimately determine the organism's shape, size, behavior, lifespan and disease susceptibility.Determining the genome sequence of an organism is now straightforward. But understanding which genes are responsible for the unique characteristics of the organism remains challenging. This is due in particular to the difficulty of correctly finding the genes in the genome and determining which parts of their sequence encode proteins. Indeed, automatic gene identification software performs poorly, thus evidence for each potential gene model needs to be visually inspected and corrected. Thus preparing the data for even a small research project can take months.Luckily there is a solution. Thousands of members of the general public have used the internet to contribute their time to help scientific projects such as GalaxyZoo and FoldIt, be it out of curiosity, desire to help the greater good, gain peer recognition or simply to have fun. Results of their contributions include the identification of previously unknown galaxy types and determination of the 3D structures of AIDS proteins. The proposed project uses a similar approach to encourage members of the general public to help identify genes in the genome and refine their borders. We are constructing a game in which contributors use pattern recognition skills to improve gene models. Contributors will be able to choose to focus their efforts on particular species (e.g.: ants, humans, elephants) or research topics (e.g.: cancer, immunity, longevity, taste or odor perception, behavior). They will earn points and thus peer recognition for their contribtutions, and may be acknowledged in scientific publications or even financially compensated.This project will thus allow members of the general public to have fun while helping to make the world a better place and facilitate scientific discovery.