September 1, 2008 (Vol. 28, No. 15)
URL:
http://www.oralgen.lanl.gov
Rating:
Strong Points: Excellent coverage of topic
Weak Points: None
Summary:
There are “good” bacteria and there are “bad” bacteria. Oralgen Databases is a site that focuses on the latter and throws viruses in, to boot. The opening page says that the scope of the site “includes molecular information pertaining to oral pathogens” and this pretty much sums it up, though it is a bit modest. For example, besides basic DNA/protein sequence info (complete with search functions), the site also includes metabolic pathway info for the various organisms, info on ABC transporters (ATP binding proteins), non-coding small RNAs, insertion sequence elements, and predictions of cellular locations. Twelve bacterial strains are comprehensively covered and ten more are on the way. Viruses featured on the site include four different Herpes variants and a pseudorabies one, as well. A site that bulldozes an enormous path through the mouth, Oralgen Databases is a must for anyone interested in molecular perspectives of oral health.
