Metadata matters: access to image data in the real world.
Data sharing is important in the biological sciences to prevent duplication of effort, to promote scientific integrity, and to facilitate and disseminate scientific discovery. Sharing requires centralized repositories, and submission to and utility of these resources require common data formats. This is particularly challenging for multidimensional microscopy image data, which are acquired from a variety of platforms with a myriad of proprietary file formats (PFFs). In this paper, we describe an open standard format that we have developed for microscopy image data. We call on the community to use open image data standards and to insist that all imaging platforms support these file formats. This will build the foundation for an open image data repository.
Linkert
Melissa
M
Laboratory for Optical and Computational Instrumentation, Department of Molecular Biology, Graduate School, University of Wisconsin at Madison, Madison, WI 53711, USA.
Rueden
Curtis T
CT
Allan
Chris
C
Burel
Jean-Marie
JM
Moore
Will
W
Patterson
Andrew
A
Loranger
Brian
B
Moore
Josh
J
Neves
Carlos
C
Macdonald
Donald
D
Tarkowska
Aleksandra
A
Sticco
Caitlin
C
Hill
Emma
E
Rossner
Mike
M
Eliceiri
Kevin W
KW
Swedlow
Jason R
JR
D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods; D016208:Databases, Factual / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D020407:Internet; D008853:Microscopy / Q000379:methods*; D012984:Software; D014584:User-Computer Interface