The Sri Lankan Genome Variation Database

The Sri Lankan Genome Variation Database (SLGVD) is a database of single nucleotide polymorphisms found in Sinhalese, Sri Lankan Tamils and Moors - the three major ethnic groups in Sri Lanka. Studies of variations in genes among different groups of individuals in the Sri Lankan population have grown steadily during the past few years. These studies generate large amounts of genetic data that is important to study the occurrences of diseases that differ across ethnic groups. There is therefore a need for a central repository of this data. The SLGVD was created to fulfill this void. The SLGVD offers web based access to genetic variation information of Sri Lankan people. It would also be an important informatics tool for both research and clinical purposes. The database was designed conforming to guidelines issued by the Human Genome Variation Society (HGVS). In addition to variation data each variation is linked with the relevant entries of Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), dbSNP and GenBank databases at the National Centre of Biotechnology Information (NCBI), USA. Genotype and allele frequencies of each variation in different ethnic groups are represented in numerical and graphical format. The SLGVD can be freely accessed online at http://hgucolombo.org/SLGVD.aspx . DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/sljbmi.v2i1.2861 Sri Lanka Journal of Bio-Medical Informatics 2011; 2 :9-20