chips

 

Function

Codon usage statistics

Description

chips calculates Frank Wright's Nc statistic for the effective number of codons used (ref 1).

This is a simple measure that quantifies how far the codon usage of a gene departs from equal usage of synonymous codons. This measure of synonymous codon usage bias, the 'effective number of codons used in a gene', Nc, can be easily calculated from codon usage data alone, and is independent of gene length and amino acid (aa) composition. Nc can take values from 20, in the case of extreme bias where one codon is exclusively used for each aa, to 61 when the use of alternative synonymous codons is equally likely. Nc thus provides an intuitively meaningful measure of the extent of codon preference in a gene.

The Nc statistic has problems in very short sequences (20 amino acids or less) which are yet to be fully resolved. They are caused by the need to consider amino acids which are missing in the sequence.

This calculation was originally in the EGCG package as "codfish" (codon usage for fission yeast). As Frank Wright is a vegan, we looked for a meat-free name for the EMBOSS version, "chips". The official explanation is "Codon Heterozygosity (Inverse of) in a Protein-coding Sequence"

If the sequence extends beyond the coding region then the start and/or end positions of the CDS must be provided because chips analyses exclusively protein coding regions.

Usage

Here is a sample session with chips


% chips -sbeg 135 -send 1292 
Codon usage statistics
Input sequence(s): tembl:paamir
Output file [paamir.chips]: 

Go to the input files for this example
Go to the output files for this example

Command line arguments

   Standard (Mandatory) qualifiers:
  [-seqall]            seqall     Sequence database USA
  [-outfile]           outfile    Output file name

   Additional (Optional) qualifiers: (none)
   Advanced (Unprompted) qualifiers:
   -cfile              codon      Codon usage table name
   -[no]sum            boolean    Sum codons over all sequences

   Associated qualifiers:

   "-seqall" associated qualifiers
   -sbegin1             integer    Start of each sequence to be used
   -send1               integer    End of each sequence to be used
   -sreverse1           boolean    Reverse (if DNA)
   -sask1               boolean    Ask for begin/end/reverse
   -snucleotide1        boolean    Sequence is nucleotide
   -sprotein1           boolean    Sequence is protein
   -slower1             boolean    Make lower case
   -supper1             boolean    Make upper case
   -sformat1            string     Input sequence format
   -sdbname1            string     Database name
   -sid1                string     Entryname
   -ufo1                string     UFO features
   -fformat1            string     Features format
   -fopenfile1          string     Features file name

   "-outfile" associated qualifiers
   -odirectory2         string     Output directory

   General qualifiers:
   -auto                boolean    Turn off prompts
   -stdout              boolean    Write standard output
   -filter              boolean    Read standard input, write standard output
   -options             boolean    Prompt for standard and additional values
   -debug               boolean    Write debug output to program.dbg
   -verbose             boolean    Report some/full command line options
   -help                boolean    Report command line options. More
                                  information on associated and general
                                  qualifiers can be found with -help -verbose
   -warning             boolean    Report warnings
   -error               boolean    Report errors
   -fatal               boolean    Report fatal errors
   -die                 boolean    Report deaths


Standard (Mandatory) qualifiers Allowed values Default
[-seqall]
(Parameter 1)
Sequence database USA Readable sequence(s) Required
[-outfile]
(Parameter 2)
Output file name Output file <sequence>.chips
Additional (Optional) qualifiers Allowed values Default
(none)
Advanced (Unprompted) qualifiers Allowed values Default
-cfile Codon usage table name Codon usage file in EMBOSS data path Ehum.cut
-[no]sum Sum codons over all sequences Boolean value Yes/No Yes

Input file format

A nucleic acid sequence USA.

Input files for usage example

'tembl:paamir' is a sequence entry in the example nucleic acid database 'tembl'

Database entry: tembl:paamir

ID   PAAMIR     standard; DNA; PRO; 2167 BP.
XX
AC   X13776; M43175;
XX
SV   X13776.1
XX
DT   19-APR-1989 (Rel. 19, Created)
DT   17-FEB-1997 (Rel. 50, Last updated, Version 22)
XX
DE   Pseudomonas aeruginosa amiC and amiR gene for aliphatic amidase regulation
XX
KW   aliphatic amidase regulator; amiC gene; amiR gene.
XX
OS   Pseudomonas aeruginosa
OC   Bacteria; Proteobacteria; gamma subdivision; Pseudomonadaceae; Pseudomonas.
XX
RN   [1]
RP   1167-2167
RA   Rice P.M.;
RT   ;
RL   Submitted (16-DEC-1988) to the EMBL/GenBank/DDBJ databases.
RL   Rice P.M., EMBL, Postfach 10-2209, Meyerhofstrasse 1, 6900 Heidelberg, FRG.
XX
RN   [2]
RP   1167-2167
RX   MEDLINE; 89211409.
RA   Lowe N., Rice P.M., Drew R.E.;
RT   "Nucleotide sequence of the aliphatic amidase regulator gene of Pseudomonas
RT   aeruginosa";
RL   FEBS Lett. 246:39-43(1989).
XX
RN   [3]
RP   1-1292
RX   MEDLINE; 91317707.
RA   Wilson S., Drew R.;
RT   "Cloning and DNA seqence of amiC, a new gene regulating expression of the
RT   Pseudomonas aeruginosa aliphatic amidase, and purification of the amiC
RT   product.";
RL   J. Bacteriol. 173:4914-4921(1991).
XX
RN   [4]
RP   1-2167
RA   Rice P.M.;
RT   ;
RL   Submitted (04-SEP-1991) to the EMBL/GenBank/DDBJ databases.
RL   Rice P.M., EMBL, Postfach 10-2209, Meyerhofstrasse 1, 6900 Heidelberg, FRG.
XX
DR   SWISS-PROT; P10932; AMIR_PSEAE.
DR   SWISS-PROT; P27017; AMIC_PSEAE.
DR   SWISS-PROT; Q51417; AMIS_PSEAE.


  [Part of this file has been deleted for brevity]

FT                   phenotype"
FT                   /replace=""
FT                   /gene="amiC"
FT   misc_feature    1
FT                   /note="last base of an XhoI site"
FT   misc_feature    648..653
FT                   /note="end of 658bp XhoI fragment, deletion in  pSW3 causes
FT                   constitutive expression of amiE"
FT   conflict        1281
FT                   /replace="g"
FT                   /citation=[3]
XX
SQ   Sequence 2167 BP; 363 A; 712 C; 730 G; 362 T; 0 other;
     ggtaccgctg gccgagcatc tgctcgatca ccaccagccg ggcgacggga actgcacgat        60
     ctacctggcg agcctggagc acgagcgggt tcgcttcgta cggcgctgag cgacagtcac       120
     aggagaggaa acggatggga tcgcaccagg agcggccgct gatcggcctg ctgttctccg       180
     aaaccggcgt caccgccgat atcgagcgct cgcacgcgta tggcgcattg ctcgcggtcg       240
     agcaactgaa ccgcgagggc ggcgtcggcg gtcgcccgat cgaaacgctg tcccaggacc       300
     ccggcggcga cccggaccgc tatcggctgt gcgccgagga cttcattcgc aaccgggggg       360
     tacggttcct cgtgggctgc tacatgtcgc acacgcgcaa ggcggtgatg ccggtggtcg       420
     agcgcgccga cgcgctgctc tgctacccga ccccctacga gggcttcgag tattcgccga       480
     acatcgtcta cggcggtccg gcgccgaacc agaacagtgc gccgctggcg gcgtacctga       540
     ttcgccacta cggcgagcgg gtggtgttca tcggctcgga ctacatctat ccgcgggaaa       600
     gcaaccatgt gatgcgccac ctgtatcgcc agcacggcgg cacggtgctc gaggaaatct       660
     acattccgct gtatccctcc gacgacgact tgcagcgcgc cgtcgagcgc atctaccagg       720
     cgcgcgccga cgtggtcttc tccaccgtgg tgggcaccgg caccgccgag ctgtatcgcg       780
     ccatcgcccg tcgctacggc gacggcaggc ggccgccgat cgccagcctg accaccagcg       840
     aggcggaggt ggcgaagatg gagagtgacg tggcagaggg gcaggtggtg gtcgcgcctt       900
     acttctccag catcgatacg cccgccagcc gggccttcgt ccaggcctgc catggtttct       960
     tcccggagaa cgcgaccatc accgcctggg ccgaggcggc ctactggcag accttgttgc      1020
     tcggccgcgc cgcgcaggcc gcaggcaact ggcgggtgga agacgtgcag cggcacctgt      1080
     acgacatcga catcgacgcg ccacaggggc cggtccgggt ggagcgccag aacaaccaca      1140
     gccgcctgtc ttcgcgcatc gcggaaatcg atgcgcgcgg cgtgttccag gtccgctggc      1200
     agtcgcccga accgattcgc cccgaccctt atgtcgtcgt gcataacctc gacgactggt      1260
     ccgccagcat gggcggggga ccgctcccat gagcgccaac tcgctgctcg gcagcctgcg      1320
     cgagttgcag gtgctggtcc tcaacccgcc gggggaggtc agcgacgccc tggtcttgca      1380
     gctgatccgc atcggttgtt cggtgcgcca gtgctggccg ccgccggaag ccttcgacgt      1440
     gccggtggac gtggtcttca ccagcatttt ccagaatggc caccacgacg agatcgctgc      1500
     gctgctcgcc gccgggactc cgcgcactac cctggtggcg ctggtggagt acgaaagccc      1560
     cgcggtgctc tcgcagatca tcgagctgga gtgccacggc gtgatcaccc agccgctcga      1620
     tgcccaccgg gtgctgcctg tgctggtatc ggcgcggcgc atcagcgagg aaatggcgaa      1680
     gctgaagcag aagaccgagc agctccagga ccgcatcgcc ggccaggccc ggatcaacca      1740
     ggccaaggtg ttgctgatgc agcgccatgg ctgggacgag cgcgaggcgc accagcacct      1800
     gtcgcgggaa gcgatgaagc ggcgcgagcc gatcctgaag atcgctcagg agttgctggg      1860
     aaacgagccg tccgcctgag cgatccgggc cgaccagaac aataacaaga ggggtatcgt      1920
     catcatgctg ggactggttc tgctgtacgt tggcgcggtg ctgtttctca atgccgtctg      1980
     gttgctgggc aagatcagcg gtcgggaggt ggcggtgatc aacttcctgg tcggcgtgct      2040
     gagcgcctgc gtcgcgttct acctgatctt ttccgcagca gccgggcagg gctcgctgaa      2100
     ggccggagcg ctgaccctgc tattcgcttt tacctatctg tgggtggccg ccaaccagtt      2160
     cctcgag                                                                2167
//

Output file format

Output files for usage example

File: paamir.chips

# CHIPS codon usage statistics

Nc = 32.951

If all codons are used, the Nc value will be 61. If only one codon is used for each amino acid the Nc value will be 20. Low values therefore indicate a strong codon bias, and high values indicate a low bias (and possibly a non-coding region).

Data files

chips reads a codon usage file but only as a template and ignores the original data.

The codon usage table is by default the file "CODONS/Ehum.cut" in the EMBOSS distribution directory.

EMBOSS data files are distributed with the application and stored in the standard EMBOSS data directory, which is defined by EMBOSS environment variable EMBOSS_DATA.

Users can provide their own data files in their own directories. Project specific files can be put in the current directory, or for tidier directory listings in a subdirectory called ".embossdata". Files for all EMBOSS runs can be put in the user's home directory, or again in a subdirectory called ".embossdata".

The directories are searched in the following order:

Notes

None.

References

  1. Wright, F. (1990) Gene 87:23-29 "The 'effective number of codons' used in a gene."

Warnings

None.

Diagnostic Error Messages

None.

Exit status

It always exits with a status of 0.

Known bugs

None.

See also

Program nameDescription
caiCAI codon adaptation index
codcmpCodon usage table comparison
cuspCreate a codon usage table
sycoSynonymous codon usage Gribskov statistic plot

Author(s)

Alan Bleasby (ableasby © rfcgr.mrc.ac.uk)
MRC Rosalind Franklin Centre for Genomics Research Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, CB10 1SB, UK

History

1999 - Written - Alan Bleasby.

Target users

This program is intended to be used by everyone and everything, from naive users to embedded scripts.

Comments