Introduction
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) in collaboration with Nature Publishing Group has established the Pathway Interaction Database (PID) in order to provide a highly structured, curated collection of information about known biomolecular interactions and key cellular processes assembled into signaling pathways.
PID is aimed at the cancer research community and others interested in cellular pathways, such as neuroscientists, developmental biologists, and immunologists. The database focuses on the biomolecular interactions that are known or believed to take place in human cells. It can be browsed as an online encyclopedia, used to run computational analyses, or employed in ways that combine these two approaches. In addition to PID's predefined pathways, search results are displayed as dynamically constructed interaction networks. These features of PID render it a useful tool for both biologists and bioinformaticians.
The database is supplemented by a concise editorial section that includes specially written synopses of recent important research articles in areas related to cancer research, and specially commissioned Bioinformatics Primers that provide practical advice on how to make the most of other relevant online resources. The database and editorial content are updated monthly, and users can opt to receive a monthly email alert to stay informed about new content.
