THE PROTEIN INFORMATION RESOURCE (PIR) AND THE PIR-INTERNATIONAL PROTEIN-SEQUENCE DATABASE

From its origin, the PIR has aspired to support research in computatio nal biology and genomics through the compilation of a comprehensive, q uality controlled and well-organized protein sequence information reso urce, The resource originated with the pioneering work of the late Mar garet O. Dayhoff in the early 1960s, Since 1988, the Protein Sequence Database has been maintained collaboratively by PIR-International, an association of macromolecular sequence data collection centers dedicat ed to fostering international cooperation as an essential element in t he development of scientific databases. The work of the resource is wi dely distributed and is available on the World Wide Web, via FTP, E-ma il server, CD-ROM and magnetic media, It is widely redistributed and i ncorporated into many other protein sequence data compilations includi ng SWISS-PROT and the Entrez system of the NCBI.