iPhone app for biologists

[ivanya]

iPhone app for biologists

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Post by ivanya » Tue Feb 16, 2010 5:18 am

Hello guys,

I am developing applications for iPhone/iPod touch and looking for a new idea. Actually, since I am a PhD student in bioinformatics, I am interested in biology and would like to make a useful app for biologists. Recently, I released a GeneticCode app and it seems to be pretty useful -- there are >3,000 downloads already and good rating.

Unfortunately, I never really worked in a usual ("wet") biological lab and don't know what kind of app might be useful there. If you have an idea, please write here. If it is not difficult to implement -- I will make it. The app will be FREE.

PS I was thinking about an app with maps of the widely-used plasmids, or for example set of the most important biological pathways? Would it be useful, how do you think?

Last edited by ivanya on Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:57 am, edited 1 time in total.

[JackBean]

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Post by JackBean » Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:53 am

How many biologists uses iPhone in the lab?

[ivanya]

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Post by ivanya » Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:55 am

This is a good questions. I don't know, actually. But it is also about iPod touch. Some biologists may do their experiments while listening to music...

[mith]

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Post by mith » Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:34 am

cell counter(clicker)
dilution/volume/concentration conversion

[JackBean]

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Post by JackBean » Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:52 am

what is cell counter?

But timer would be probably fine

[jonmoulton]

Re: iPhone app for biologists

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Post by jonmoulton » Tue Feb 16, 2010 4:37 pm

Nucleotide sequence analysis tools:
- generate complement of sequence
- calculate mass of oligo
- translate mRNA sequence to polypeptide sequence
- access & download selected sequence from NCBI, Ensembl, UCSD
- analyze for self-complementarity (canonical pairing and non-canonical pairs (e.g. G-T))
- Tm calculation for oligos
- restriction mapping

Heck, while we're at it...
- map splice sites from Ensembl onto GenBank transcripts
- locate probable miRNA response elements on mRNA 3'-UTRs
- calculate base composition statistics for nucleic acid seq. (%A, %C, %G, %T, %CG, %GT)

Now I'll need an iPhone...

[JackBean]

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Post by JackBean » Tue Feb 16, 2010 4:47 pm

do you really think, that this will be done on iPhone instead of laptop? I don't know, but you probably won't write down your sequence in the lab and check for that stuff but you will probably do it before you go to lab, won't you?

[Darwin420]

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Post by Darwin420 » Tue Feb 16, 2010 5:31 pm

Jack....you really are against iphones aren't you?

[JackBean]

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Post by JackBean » Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:00 pm

For sure not Maybe because I have only some old cell phone only for calls and messages, so I don't see much such usage.
But I'm still with what I wrote before. IMHO you should do such things before you go to lab...

[BioProf]

Re: iPhone app for biologists

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Post by BioProf » Mon Feb 22, 2010 3:32 am

Ouch! I could see, perhaps conversions - but really. If it was my lab and any of the grad students were using the iphone apps - they'd be off my research!! There are computers in the lab - and Pandora is not banned from the computers, any of this information is available online from more (sorry) respectable sources PNAS, NCBI and blast.

I dont think your idea is bad, I guess it could be beneficial - but using my iPhone I still have access via the net all of the programs and sites mentioned above.

[ivanya]

Re: iPhone app for biologists

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Post by ivanya » Mon Feb 22, 2010 3:42 am

using my iPhone I still have access via the net all of the programs and sites mentioned above.

Yes, you are right. But the idea of iPhone app is to make use of that programs more convenient and faster. It's very inconvenient to browse usual web-pages on iPhone, because the screen is too small.

Also, I can make an app that will not require Internet connection and it will work everywhere and much faster than through Safari.

[mith]

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Post by mith » Tue Feb 23, 2010 4:23 am

Depends on your target user, if you're imagining a lazy grad student who wants those conversion/calculation formulas then yes. Otherwise there's plenty of good/better ways to do lab work.