The blue logo of MacVector, inc.

Using BLAST to automatically annotate a sequence

—

by

Chris
in

You can use the Database->Auto-Annotate Sequence function to quickly annotate a bare sequence using existing annotated sequences on your file system. However, this only works if your collection of sequences contains features representing all parts of the bare sequence. Luckily, if you have an unannotated region after running Auto-Annotate, you can use MacVector’s built-in BLAST function to find and download matching annotated sequences, then run Auto-Annotate to add features to the blank region.

If you are interested in this, the full steps are discussed in this blog article.

  • Briefly, the first step is to select the unannotated region of your test sequence. You can do this in the Map tab by choosing the sequence selection mode in the floating graphics palette and drag-selecting the blank region.

    • NewImage

  • Choose Database->Internet BLAST Search to find the best hits to the blank region.
  • Select the top four or five hits in the BLAST Results Description List and choose Database->Retrieve To Folder.
  • Now run Database->Auto-Annotate Sequence, choosing the folder where you retrieved the matching hits.