A Knowledge Base for D. melanogaster Gene Interactions Involved in Pattern Formation

The understanding of pattern formation in Drosophila requires the handling of the many genetic and molecular interactions which occur between developmental genes. For that purpose, a knowledge base (KNIFE) has been developed in order to structure and manipulate the interaction data. KNIFE contains data about interactions published in the literature and gathered from various databases. These data are structured in an object knowledge representation system into various interrelated entities. KNIFE can be browsed through a WWW interface in order to select, classify and examine the objects and their references in other bases. It also provides specialised biological tools such as interaction network manipulation and diagnosis of missing interactions.