Understanding and using Blast results

[Cogswell24]

I have done quite a bit of research on everything from BLAST to Flu types and before I begin my progect I need to know how to utilize the results from blast. I understand the E values and BIT scores but my question is not on compareing them, but what do you do after you have compared the BIT scores? How does this information relate to the effectiveness of the Flu virus and most of all what does it mean exsactly?
Thankyou
-c

[davidkallman]

Hi Cogswell24!

I don't know bit or BLAST either. Below are places that may be able to help:

Have you tried: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/blast/megablast.shtml

In general, you can supply:
"How do you compare BIT scores using blast?" to answers.com for other sites.

BLAST Notes:

1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Education/B ... sary2.html has a BLAST glossary and links to a BLAST information guide, Query tutorial, a tutorial, a guide and a PSI-BLAST tutorial.
2. http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/H ... last.shtml - has a tutorial on sequence similarity searching using NCBI BLAST.

Searching Notes:

1. The exact wording of your input to answers.com, or any other search engine, may have a big impact on your result. So, some experimentation may be needed.
2. Beware of sites that are just trying to sell you something. In answers.com, these are supposed to be segregated under "Sponsored Links." But, they occasionally leak into "Web Results."

I realize your query has been on the board for several days, and your deadline is fast approaching. So please excuse if you already knew all the sites above.

[carolinethorn]

David - They posted this on life sciences as well and i picked it up there.
-Caroline

[davidkallman]

Caroline -

Thanks for your comment.

Actually a similar (same?) topic was posted by two people, Cogswell24 on the Math & Computer Science board and lizdankle on the Life, Earth, and Social Sciences board. This makes automated detection of duplicates difficult, and it's not a case of the same person entering the same question on two boards.

It would be nice to have some solution. I think that would require looking at the structure of the bulletin board.