Technology

Ensembl

Ensembl provides a centralized genome browser and high-quality automated annotation for vertebrate species and key model organisms.

Managed by a partnership between EMBL-EBI and the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Ensembl serves as the primary infrastructure for vertebrate genome annotation. The platform integrates diverse data types: gene models, regulatory elements, and genetic variations for species ranging from Homo sapiens to Danio rerio. Researchers utilize the Variant Effect Predictor (VEP) to interpret genomic variants and BioMart for custom data mining. Developers interact with the database through a robust REST API or the Perl API for high-throughput pipelines. The ecosystem now spans thousands of genomes (including plants, fungi, and bacteria via Ensembl Genomes) to support global comparative genomics research.