PATRIC: The VBI PathoSystems Resource Integration Center

Snyder, E. E.; Kampanya, N.; Lu, J.; Nordberg, E. K.; Karur, H. R.; Shukla, M.; Soneja, J.; Tian, Y.; Xue, T.; Yoo, H.; Zhang, F.; Dharmanolla, C.; Dongre, N. V.; Gillespie, J. J.; Hamelius, J.; Hance, M.; Huntington, K. I.; Jukneliene, D.; Koziski, J.; Mackasmiel, L.; Mane, S. P.; Nguyen, V.; Purkayastha, A.; Shallom, J.; Yu, G.; Guo, Y.; Gabbard, J.; Hix, D.; Azad, A. F.; Baker, S. C.; Boyle, S. M.; Khudyakov, Y.; Meng, X. J.; Rupprecht, C.; Vinje, J.; Crasta, O. R.; Czar, M. J.; Dickerman, A.; Eckart, J. D.; Kenyon, R.; Will, R.; Setubal, J. C.; Sobral, B. W. S.

Bioterrorism became an important national security issue (1) following the deliberate release of anthrax spores into the US postal system in October 2001 (2) . Meanwhile, emerging and reemerging infectious diseases (3) have had profound effects on public health in many parts of the world. Recognizing the pathogens responsible for these diseases as threats to homeland security, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the US National Institutes of Health has embarked upon a series of initiatives aimed at developing a comprehensive understanding of the organisms identified as NIAID category A, B and C priority pathogens (for a complete list, see http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/biodefense/bandc_priority. htm). The Virginia Bioinformatics Institute's PathoSystems Resource Integration Center (PATRIC) is one of eight Bioinformatics Resource Centers (BRCs) established to study the NIAID priority pathogens and develop these information resources for the research community. While database resources for bacterial ((4) and those cited in (5) ) and viral (6, 7) genomics have been available for number of years, this project seeks to integrate genomics with comparative genomics and pathway analysis and ultimately proteomics, transcriptomics, immune epitope mapping, hostresponse and other downstream technologies. The goal is to help researchers and clinicians better detect and respond to biothreat agents (and infectious diseases in general) by facilitating the development of diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics. This requires access to comprehensive information on the molecular biology, physiology and pathogenicity of these organisms.