DNAvisualization.org: A serverless web tool for DNA sequence visualization

Abstract

Raw DNA sequences contain an immense amount of meaningful biological information. However, these sequences are hard for humans to intuitively interpret. To solve this problem, a number of methods have been proposed to transform DNA sequences into two-dimensional visualizations. DNAvisualization.org implements several of these methods in a cost effective and performant manner via a novel, entirely serverless architecture. By taking advantage of recent developments in serverless parallel computing and selective data retrieval, the website is able to offer users the ability to visualize up to thirty 4.5 Mb DNA sequences simultaneously using one of five supported methods and to export these visualizations in a variety of publication-ready formats.