Northeast India Helminth Parasite Information Database (NEIHPID): Knowledge Base for Helminth Parasites.

Devendra Kumar Biswal,Graciously Kharumnuid,Veena Tandon,Welfrank Thongnibah,Manish Debnath

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157459

Devendra Kumar Biswal, Graciously Kharumnuid + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0157459

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Journal: PloS one	Publication Date: Jun 10, 2016
Citations: 7	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: North Eastern Hill University, Biotech Park

Abstract

Most metazoan parasites that invade vertebrate hosts belong to three phyla: Platyhelminthes, Nematoda and Acanthocephala. Many of the parasitic members of these phyla are collectively known as helminths and are causative agents of many debilitating, deforming and lethal diseases of humans and animals. The North-East India Helminth Parasite Information Database (NEIHPID) project aimed to document and characterise the spectrum of helminth parasites in the north-eastern region of India, providing host, geographical distribution, diagnostic characters and image data. The morphology-based taxonomic data are supplemented with information on DNA sequences of nuclear, ribosomal and mitochondrial gene marker regions that aid in parasite identification. In addition, the database contains raw next generation sequencing (NGS) data for 3 foodborne trematode parasites, with more to follow. The database will also provide study material for students interested in parasite biology. Users can search the database at various taxonomic levels (phylum, class, order, superfamily, family, genus, and species), or by host, habitat and geographical location. Specimen collection locations are noted as co-ordinates in a MySQL database and can be viewed on Google maps, using Google Maps JavaScript API v3. The NEIHPID database has been made freely available at http://nepiac.nehu.ac.in/index.php

Highlights

Countries in the tropics or subtropics provide optimum conditions for the growth and propagation of helminth parasites and India, which is located in a tropical zone, possess a helminth fauna that is rich both in numbers and in variety
Experimental data generated by sequencing labs and made available in the public domain provide the basis for the systematic genomic analysis
The analysis and interpretation of genomic data identified by searching the internet was compiled and relevant knowledge was derived with the aid of information and communication technologies (ICT) (Fig 1)

Summary

Introduction

Countries in the tropics or subtropics provide optimum conditions for the growth and propagation of helminth parasites and India, which is located in a tropical zone, possess a helminth fauna that is rich both in numbers and in variety. In the present database there is a focus on characterization of parasite biodiversity in mammalian livestock and other food animals in Northeast India by integration of comparative genomics and molecular systematics that encompass parasite primary specimens, host information, and spatial and temporal data.

Results

Conclusion