Most journals now expect that DNA and amino acid sequences that appear in articles will be submitted to a sequence database before publication. Please be aware that it is only necessary to submit the sequence to one database, whichever one is most convenient, without regard for where the sequence may be published. Data exchange between GenBank, EMBL and DDBJ occurs daily.
NCBI has developed a WWW form, called BankIt, for convenient and quick submission of sequence data. BankIt has been developed in conjunction with the two international collaborating databases (EMBL and DDBJ) and it is anticipated these two databases will be offering similar services in the near future.
BankIt allows you to enter sequence information into a form, edit as necessary, and add biological annotation (e.g., coding regions, mRNA features). BankIt transforms your data into GenBank format for your review and when your record is completed, it can be submitted directly to GenBank. You have the option of adding information by using text boxes to describe in your own words the source of the sequence and its biological features. The GenBank annotation staff reviews the submitted textual information, incorporates it into the appropriate structured fields, and returns the record by e-mail for your review.
GenBank will promptly contact you by e-mail with an accession number. Once the testing phase is completed, BankIt will automatically issue accession numbers.
BankIt has been tested with Netscape clients for Unix, Macs, and PCs. In addition, the Mosaic client for Unix, and the MacWeb client for Macs, have successfully been used.
If you do not have access to the WWW, the current method of formatting your sequence data for submission to GenBank is to use the Authorin program. Authorin has on-screen forms in which to enter information about the submitter of the sequence, the associated bibliographic and biological data, and the sequence itself. The program is provided with full documentation. Submission files generated by Authorin (files ending in '.sbt') may be sent by electronic mail to:
gb-sub@ncbi.nlm.nih.govAs an alternative, the submission file can be copied to floppy disk and mailed to GenBank Submissions at:
Please label the disk with your name and file name and indicate whether it is a PC or MAC disk.
GenBank will provide you with a unique ID number to identify your sequence, usually within one working day, if the submission is received via electronic mail. This accession number serves as confirmation that you have submitted your data, and allows the community to retrieve the data upon reading the journal article.
The accession number should be included in your manuscript, preferably in a footnote on the first page of the article, or as required by individual journal procedures.
NCBI processes update requests as well as new submissions. You can provide additional annotation, correct errors or omissions, or request the release of a "hold-until-published" record. BankIt or Authorin may be used for Updates, or you can use an e-mail form. You may also send updates as narrative e-mail messages or as appropriately edited GenBank flat file records. Be sure to give the accession number of the sequence to be updated along with all update, correction, or publication information. Send it to:
update@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
We urge submitters to use BankIt or Authorin, but if you are unable to do so, we have an electronic submission form that can be used as an alternative. Please specify that you need the electronic submission form. Request it from:
authorin@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Batches of ESTs (expressed sequence tags) and STSs (sequence tagged sites) can be submitted via special streamlined procedures.
Some authors are concerned that the appearance of their data in GenBank prior to publication will compromise their work. GenBank will, upon request, withhold release of new submissions until the paper is published.
We encourage authors to inform us of the appearance of the published data; failure to do so could result in delays in making your data available in GenBank. Please send the full publication data--all authors, title, journal, volume, pages and date--to the following address:
update@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov