title: Numerical classification of coding sequences.
abstract: DNA sequences coding for protein may be represented by counts of nucleotides or codons. A complete reading frame may be abbreviated by its base count, e.g. A76C158G121T74, or with the corresponding codon table, e.g. (AAA)0(AAC)1(AAG)9 ... (TTT)0. We propose that these numerical designations be used to augment current methods of sequence annotation. Because base counts and codon tables do not require revision as knowledge of function evolves, they are well-suited to act as cross-references, for example to identify redundant GenBank entries. These descriptors may be compared, in place of DNA sequences, to extract homologous genes from large databases. This approach permits rapid searching with good selectivity.
authors.affiliation: Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley 94720.
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: T H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Jukes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003062:Codon; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005091:Exons; D005821:Genetic Techniques; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D003062:Codon