FICKETT

Finding gene boundaries on large contigs

James Fickett

SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, USA

Sequence similarity is the most reliable tool available for gene structure prediction, but it is not infallible and, more importantly, is only available when a close homolog to the new gene is known. De novo gene prediction will play an especially important role in the next year, as the newly sequenced genome is scrutinized for medically important genes. The greatest limitation of the current generation of gene finders is in locating gene boundaries. We will discuss the extent of the problem and some progress towards a solution.