The Bioinformatics Resource Centers (BRCs) are a group of five Internet-based research centers established in 2004 and funded by NIAID (the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.)Overview, Bioinformatics Resource Centers
, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), January 10, 2008. The BRCs were formed in response to the threats posed by emerging and re-emerging pathogens, particularly Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Category A, B, and C pathogens,CDC Bioterrorism Agents and Diseases (By Category)
, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Department of Health and Human Services), accessed July 8, 2008. and their potential use in bioterrorism. The intention of NIAID in funding these

bioinformatics Bioinformatics () is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data, in particular when the data sets are large and complex. As an interdisciplinary field of science, bioinformatics combi ...

centers is to assist researchers involved in the experimental characterization of such pathogens and the formation of

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

, vaccines, or diagnostic tools to combat them. The main goals of the BRCs are as follows: 1) To create comprehensive databases of reliable, up-to-date bioinformatic data ( genetic, proteomic,

biochemical Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology an ...

, or microbiological) related to the pathogens of interest;
2) To provide researchers with easy access to this data through Internet-based search and data retrieval user interfaces;
3) To provide researchers with relevant, state-of-the art computational tools for bioinformatic analysis of these data. The five BRCs are supported by various institutions, both publicly and privately owned, throughout the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and Canada. Each BRC focuses on a different group of pathogens.

References

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See also

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External links