PiType: A Protein Interaction Prediction Cytoscape App

<p>PiType is an already existing protein-protein interaction classifying tool created by my mentor. It currently exists as both a web app and a standalone software package. PiType is designed to classify proteins within a network into different categories: Mutually Exclusive (ME) vs Simultaneously Possible (SP) and Obligate (O) vs Non-Obligate (NO). To do this, PiType takes a series of proteins within a network, analyses them to determine which of the above categories they fit into, and outputs that information as a table. Because of the current input and output format, it is difficult for biologists to analyze and interpret the data. Cytoscape is open source software that provides numerous modules for studying and visualizing protein networks, and as such is the perfect tool to use for PiType. My project over the summer will thus be to create a Cytoscape plugin app using PiType’s already existent algorithms, to create a visualization tool that provides an intuitive interface for biologists. By taking the base features of PiType, and implementing them as a Cytoscape plugin, my project will widen the number of potential users, and the utility of the app.</p>