About this Research Topic
Given the success of Volume I of this Research Topic, and how rapid the subject area is evolving, we are pleased to announce the launch of Web Tools for Modeling and Analysis of Biomolecular Interactions Volume II.
Over the past few decades web-based tools and databases have flourished thanks to their wide availability and ease of use. They offer some advantages over stand-alone tools, such as not requiring special skills for installing them, ubiquity (as only a web browser is needed to access and use them), and most importantly they represent an honest attempt to democratize science. If well designed, these tools and databases might be interconnected and enriched through their composition as building blocks, e.g. interconnecting REST APIs, for future developments and fostering synergies between different fields.
The aim of this Research Topic is to cover the publication of new, or substantially updated, tools in the field of computational modeling and analysis of biomolecular interactions. Areas to be covered in this Research Topic may include, but are not limited to:
● Web-based tools for computational modeling of biomolecular interactions
● Web-based tools for analysis of biomolecular interactions
● Web-based tools for proteomics data analysis of interaction networks
● Web-based tools and software for visualization of biomolecular structures and interactions
The collection focuses on useful and user-friendly tools intended for use by non-specialists. Hence, novelty of the approach or the methodology is not a requirement for this collection as long as it can be helpful for users even if they are not proficient in bioinformatics. The interoperability and code/software accessibility requirements intend to facilitate the reuse and interconnection of tools to create an even richer user experience. Tools aiming to be included in this Research Topic are required to:
● Be maintained, at least, for the next two years after publication
● Be freely accessible for academics
● Provide help pages, including a step-by-step tutorial. Non-trivial examples of tool usage must be available online. For databases, REST API description and usage examples are highly recommended.
● Supported by the last versions of at least three of the major web browsers (Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox)
● User-friendly and well-designed user interface and experience
● For databases, they might adhere to the most with FAIR principles (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FAIR_data)
● Open source if possible. In that case, code should be versioned using any popular online tracking service (GitHub, GitLab, etc.) and following best coding practices (documentation, testing, etc.)
Over the past few decades web-based tools and databases have flourished thanks to their wide availability and ease of use. They offer some advantages over stand-alone tools, such as not requiring special skills for installing them, ubiquity (as only a web browser is needed to access and use them), and most importantly they represent an honest attempt to democratize science. If well designed, these tools and databases might be interconnected and enriched through their composition as building blocks, e.g. interconnecting REST APIs, for future developments and fostering synergies between different fields.
The aim of this Research Topic is to cover the publication of new, or substantially updated, tools in the field of computational modeling and analysis of biomolecular interactions. Areas to be covered in this Research Topic may include, but are not limited to:
● Web-based tools for computational modeling of biomolecular interactions
● Web-based tools for analysis of biomolecular interactions
● Web-based tools for proteomics data analysis of interaction networks
● Web-based tools and software for visualization of biomolecular structures and interactions
The collection focuses on useful and user-friendly tools intended for use by non-specialists. Hence, novelty of the approach or the methodology is not a requirement for this collection as long as it can be helpful for users even if they are not proficient in bioinformatics. The interoperability and code/software accessibility requirements intend to facilitate the reuse and interconnection of tools to create an even richer user experience. Tools aiming to be included in this Research Topic are required to:
● Be maintained, at least, for the next two years after publication
● Be freely accessible for academics
● Provide help pages, including a step-by-step tutorial. Non-trivial examples of tool usage must be available online. For databases, REST API description and usage examples are highly recommended.
● Supported by the last versions of at least three of the major web browsers (Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox)
● User-friendly and well-designed user interface and experience
● For databases, they might adhere to the most with FAIR principles (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FAIR_data)
● Open source if possible. In that case, code should be versioned using any popular online tracking service (GitHub, GitLab, etc.) and following best coding practices (documentation, testing, etc.)
Keywords: software, web server, modeling, analysis, interactions, structure, databases Background
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
