Introduction to The Hyve’s Open Targets Platform Instance
The Open Targets Platform (OTP) is an application that can greatly help in drug target discovery and prioritization. In a previous blog post, we introduced The Hyve’s Open Targets Platform instance. This version of the Open Targets platform contains some improvements, such as the addition of cBioPortal data, the addition of Knowledge Graphs, and some very useful data filter buttons. In this blog post, we will discuss our latest addition, the Cell Type page.
The Importance of Cell Type-Specific Data
Knowledge about different cell types plays an important role in drug discovery. Different cell types have very different gene expression patterns and will use different cell signaling pathways. This means that drugs are not always effective in all cell types. Since diseases are very often related to a specific cell type or organ, this information can be used to make drugs more selective and predict off-target effects. Prediction of such side effects in an early stage will decrease the chance of failure in later clinical trial stages.
In the last few years, the amount of cell type-specific data has increased significantly—from proteomics data at the cellular level to Single Cell RNA sequencing to measure gene expression at the single-cell level. Additionally, the introduction of CRISPR-Cas technology has led to the identification of essential genes in specific cell types. The integration of data from these different sources will enable rational drug design, yielding more specific, effective, and safe therapies to aid patients.
The Cell Type Page in the Open Targets Platform
Currently, the Open Targets Platform focuses on Targets, Diseases, and Drugs as its most important entities. To introduce cell type-specific information, we have designed a Cell Type page. This page contains Cell Type-specific information, such as gene expression data from the Human Protein Atlas (HPA), CRISPR screen data, and Cell Ontology information. Additionally, we have added the HPA data to the Target page. To increase the usability of the Cell Type page, we have linked target-specific data from the Cell Type page to the Target page and vice versa.
The addition of the Cell Type page highlights the flexible nature of the Open Targets Platform. The platform is highly customizable and can be extended with new and relevant data sources.
We hope this blog post has made you as excited about the addition of Cell Type-specific information to the Open Targets Platform as we are. We understand that many more relevant cell type-specific data sources exist. We are keen to collaborate with you to introduce new data and further enhance the Cell Type page as a valuable asset in the Open Targets Platform! If you have any questions regarding the Open Targets Platform and its potential for your research, feel free to contact us.
At The Hyve, we’re always looking for new features to maintain and extend our Open Targets Platform instance. Be sure to check out our website regularly to stay updated on new developments.
Open Targets