January 1, 2015 (Vol. 35, No. 1)
Rating:
Strong Points: Nice interface, good tutorial
Weak Points: Only superficial exploration of genome
Platform:
iPad
Cost:
Free
Summary:
The Human Genome app is a beautifully designed app that allows users to easily explore the human genome, as visualized by chromosome. In this chromosome overview, users can browse by trait or by gene. Users can select up to four traits or genes (including a combination of both traits and genes) to be displayed on the chromosome map, with each trait/gene displayed in a different color. Tapping on one of the marked chromosomes brings up an enlarged view with the name of the labeled gene. Additional information about the gene can be found by selecting the name, as this opens an in-app browser window to NCBI. While it would be nice if this app allowed users to actually zoom in to specific loci to view additional genomic features, the app does have a beautiful interface and provides a nice bird’s-eye view of the genome.
