title: CAVEman: Standardized anatomical context for biomedical data mapping.
abstract: The authors have created a software system called the CAVEman, for the visual integration and exploration of heterogeneous anatomical and biomedical data. The CAVEman can be applied for both education and research tasks. The main component of the system is a three-dimensional digital atlas of the adult male human anatomy, structured according to the nomenclature of Terminologia Anatomica. The underlying data-indexing mechanism uses standard ontologies to map a range of biomedical data types onto the atlas. The CAVEman system is now used to visualize genetic processes in the context of the human anatomy and to facilitate visual exploration of the data. Through the use of Javatrade mark software, the atlas-based system is portable to virtually any computer environment, including personal computers and workstations. Existing Java tools for biomedical data analysis have been incorporated into the system. The affordability of virtual-reality installations has increased dramatically over the last several years. This creates new opportunities for educational scenarios that model important processes in a patient's body, including gene expression patterns, metabolic activity, the effects of interventions such as drug treatments, and eventually surgical simulations.
authors.affiliation: Sun Center of Excellence for Visual Genomics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Andrei L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Turinsky
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fanea
authors.forename: Quang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Trinh
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wat
authors.forename: Benedikt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hallgrímsson
authors.forename: Xiaoli
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Xueling
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Shu
authors.forename: Julie N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Stromer
authors.forename: Jonathan W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Carol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Grosenick
authors.forename: Masumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yajima
authors.forename: Christoph W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Sensen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000715:Anatomy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D000716:Anatomy, Artistic; D020811:Biomedical Technology; D003196:Computer Graphics; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008297:Male; D008488:Medical Illustration; D008953:Models, Anatomic; D011381:Programming Languages; D012985:Software Design; D049490:Systems Biology; D018511:Systems Integration; D009626:Terminology as Topic; D014584:User-Computer Interface