An Object-Protocol Model Multidatabase Query System for Rice and Maize

With the recent explosion in genome analysis of various organisms, access to different databases often involves browsing through repositories characterized by various degrees of heterogeneity. In most cases, each database is characterized by a specific view of the domain and implemented using a specific database management system. The Rice Genome Research Program (RGP) and the Missouri Maize Project (MMP) have developed a scheme for cross querying of rice and maize databases using the OPM (Object-Protocol Model) tools of Gene Logic, Inc. This enables users to explore semantics and to assemble biological information from the two databases. As rice is considered a model for genome analysis of cereal crops, genome information of rice can be directly reflected in maize and vice-versa.