Gosha: a database of organisms with defined optimal growth temperatures

Abstract

Currently, we are witnessing an explosive accumulation of genomic sequences for organisms across all branches of life. However, typically the genomic data lack the information about optimal growth conditions of corresponding organisms. As a result, it becomes challenging to use the genomic data for studying the adaptations of organisms and biological molecules to diverse environments. To address this problem, we have created a database Gosha, available at http://melnikovlab.com/gshc. This database brings together information about the genomic sequences and optimal growth temperatures for 25,324 species, including [~]89% of the bacterial species with known genome sequences. Using this database, one can annotate genomic sequences from thousands of species and correlate variations in genes and genomes with optimal growth temperatures. The database interface allows users to retrieve optimal growth temperatures for bacteria, eukaryotes and archaea, providing a tool to explore how organisms, genomes, and individual proteins and nucleic acids adapt to certain temperatures. We hope that this database will contribute to medicine and biotechnology by helping to create a better understanding of molecular adaptations to heat and cold, leading to new ways to preserve biological samples, engineer useful enzymes, and develop biological materials and organisms with the desired tolerance to heat and cold. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACTGosha (available at www.melnikovlab.com/gshc) is a database that collects information about the optimal growth temperatures of living species. This database aims to facilitate studies of molecular adaptation to specific temperatures. O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=103 SRC="FIGDIR/small/473645v2_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (28K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@17b949dorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@5a0271org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1566cccorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@100e590_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG