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Sequence Analysis with WinGene/WinPep 741<br />

101<br />

Sequence Analysis with WinGene/WinPep<br />

Lars Hennig<br />

1. Introduction<br />

Retrieving information from sequence data is becoming increasingly important.<br />

Currently, a multitude of public services is available via the Internet. However, many<br />

scientists are annoyed by slow network connections and busy servers. Moreover, identifying<br />

appropriate web pages while struggling with outdated links is often extremely<br />

time consuming. For these reasons, PC-based stand-alone applications constitute a useful<br />

alternative to Internet services. As available commercial software is usually quite<br />

expensive, WinGene/WinPep were developed that may be used free of charge by<br />

researchers in academic institutions (1)<br />

WinGene/WinPep merge diverse analysis possibilities with maximal comfort for<br />

the user. Thus, the programs combine data analysis and data presentation. Simple, general<br />

principles of Windows ® programs allow immediate usage without the need for<br />

lengthy training. Specialized analysis tasks for which Internet capabilities are extremely<br />

advantageous, for example, structure prediction and databank searches, were not<br />

included in the software. The first version of WinPep was released in 1998 (1) and<br />

became very popular. The latest versions, WinGene 2.2 and WinPep 2.3, released in<br />

fall 2000, contain several improvements and new functions. Tables 1 and 2 summarize<br />

the abilities of WinGene 2.0 and WinPep 2.2, respectively. The following subheadings<br />

describe some features in more detail.<br />

2. Materials<br />

2.1. Hardware<br />

The computer should be at least a PC/486 equipped with 8MB RAM. WinGene/<br />

WinPep requires one of the following operating systems: Windows ® 95, Windows ® 98,<br />

Windows ® NT, or Windows ® 2000. At least 3 MB hard disk space must be available.<br />

Connection to the Internet is needed only for downloading and updating the software.<br />

2.2. Software<br />

WinGene/WinPep can be downloaded free of charge from http://www.ipw.agrl.ethz.<br />

ch/~lhennig/winpep.html. WinGene performs restriction analysis of nucleotide<br />

From: The <strong>Protein</strong> <strong>Protocols</strong> Handbook, 2nd Edition<br />

Edited by: J. M. Walker © Humana Press Inc., Totowa, NJ<br />

741

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