The Global Invertebrate Genomics Alliance (GIGA): Developing Community Resources to Study Diverse Invertebrate Genomes

Abstract
Over 95% of all metazoan (animal) species comprise the invertebrates, but very few genomes from these organisms have been sequenced. We have, therefore, formed a Global Invertebrate Genomics Alliance (GIGA). Our intent is to build a collaborative network of diverse scientists to tackle major challenges (e.g., species selection, sample collection and storage, sequence assembly, annotation, analytical tools) associated with genome/transcriptome sequencing across a large taxonomic spectrum. We aim to promote standards that will facilitate comparative approaches to invertebrate genomics and collaborations across the international scientific community. Candidate study taxa include species from Porifera, Ctenophora, Cnidaria, Placozoa, Mollusca, Arthropoda, Echinodermata, Annelida, Bryozoa, and Platyhelminthes, among others. GIGA will target 7000 noninsect/nonnematode species, with an emphasis on marine taxa because of the unrivaled phyletic diversity in the oceans. Priorities for selecting invertebrates for sequencing will include, but are not restricted to, their phylogenetic placement; relevance to organismal, ecological, and conservation research; and their importance to fisheries and human health. We highlight benefits of sequencing both whole genomes (DNA) and transcriptomes and also suggest policies for genomic-level data access and sharing based on transparency and inclusiveness. The GIGA Web site () has been launched to facilitate this collaborative venture.

Citation
(2013). The Global Invertebrate Genomics Alliance (GIGA): Developing Community Resources to Study Diverse Invertebrate Genomes. Journal of Heredity, 105(1), 1–18. doi:10.1093/jhered/est084

Acknowledgements
American Genetic Association with a Special Event Award that provided the primary funding for the maiden GIGA workshop; Theodosius Dobzhansky Center for Genome Bioinformatics (Russia Ministry of Science Mega grant 11.G34.31.0068 to S.J. O'Brien, Principal Investigator); Life Technologies and BioNanoGenomics; National Science Foundation's "Assembling the Tree of Life" (DEB awards 0732903, 0829763, 0829783, 0829791, 0829986).

Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)

Journal
Journal of Heredity

DOI
10.1093/jhered/est084

Permanent link to this record