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Related topics are listed below.
Sequences
Sequences
You can add the following types of sequences to a MegAlign Pro project: Ungapped sequences, including SeqNinja files Gapped sequences Multi-segment sequences Only the portion of a sequence that corresponds to a feature Sequences from a saved MegAlign…
Sequences view
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Sequences view
The Sequences View displays added sequences and aligned sequences. Sequence names selected in this view are simultaneously selected all other views in MegAlign Pro. Similarly, sequence names selected elsewhere will be highlighted in the Sequences View. To access the…
Subalign sequences
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Modify a multiple alignment » Subalign sequences
While sequences such as full-length calmodulin proteins typically align well throughout the entire length of the polypeptides, full-length alignments of other sequences may not generate such neat blocks of similarity. For example, multiple sequence alignments of…
Unalign aligned sequences
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Unalign aligned sequences
To unalign all sequences in an alignment: Choose Align > Unalign All. When the following message appears, click OK. Execution of this command causes gaps to be removed from all of the previously aligned sequences. The sequences are then automatically…
Rename sequences manually
Sequences » Rename sequences manually
To manually rename a selected sequence: Select a single sequence name from any MegAlign Pro view, then right-click on it and choose Rename Sequence(s). Alternatively, select the sequence name and choose Edit > Rename Sequence(s). The Choose Label dialog opens…
Search for Sequences Online
Search for Sequences Online
This application lets you search National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) databases for matches to text or sequence that you specify. Query part or all of a nucleotide or protein sequence against one of NCBI’s sequence databases using the Basic…
Remove sequences from a project
Sequences » Remove sequences from a project
The following procedure causes the selected sequences to be completely removed from the project, not simply moved to the “Unaligned Sequences” area. To remove sequences from the project: Select one or more of the aligned or unaligned sequences in the Overview…
When multiple sequences are selected
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When multiple sequences are selected
If two or more sequences have been selected in any view, the Details panel contains the following information: Heading The number of sequences selected (in blue). Sequence type – DNA, RNA or Protein. Min. and Max. sequence lengths –…
Search for disagreements between sequences
Search » Search for disagreements between sequences
MegAlign Pro supports searching for positions where the same letter code does not occur in all sequences. This type of search looks only at IUPAC letter codes and ignores gaps. In other words, it will not look for positions in which one sequence has a letter code and…
Change the order of sequences
Sequences » Change the order of sequences
Whether preparing an image of a view for publication, or simply for ease of analysis, you may want to change the order of sequences in one or more views. For instance, you may wish to order the tree to create a pleasing image or to draw the viewer’s focus to a…
Filter search results
Search for Sequences Online » Filter search results
After doing a BLAST or Entrez search, the Table view shows a list of potential matches. To filter this table to include only matches that meet additional criteria, click the Filter results tool () in the header and then click Filter. This opens the Filter dialog. The…
Part A: Add and align sequences
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a Clustal Omega alignment » Part A: Add and align sequences
In this part of the tutorial, you will be adding 143 DNA sequences to the MegAlign Pro project and aligning them with the Clustal Omega algorithm using the default settings. If you have not yet downloaded and extracted the tutorial data, click here to download it.…
Add gapped sequences to a project
Sequences » Add gapped sequences to a project
To import gapped sequences from an existing MegAlign Pro file (.msa): The following procedures both remove gaps from the sequences and place the updated sequences in the “Unassembled Sequences” area of the project. Click on the Add Sequences button ( ) or…
Add ungapped sequences to a project
Sequences » Add ungapped sequences to a project
To add standard (ungapped) sequences, or additional sequences, to an existing project: You can add standard DNA, RNA or protein sequences from a wide variety of file types, including SeqNinja .star files. (See Advantages of using SeqNinja files). *Note: To add only a…
Reverse complement one or more sequences
Sequences » Reverse complement one or more sequences
To reverse complement one or more sequences: Select one or more sequences in the Overview or Sequences view. Do either of the following: Press the Reverse Complement tool () in the toolbar. Right-click on the selection and choose Reverse…
Overview after aligning and entering additional sequences
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Overview » Overview after aligning and entering additional sequences
The Overview has different appearances, depending on the stage and workflow. In all cases, sequences are represented as either gray or colored blocks. Any sequence that is not part of an alignment is shown in solid gray. After performing an alignment, any new…
Rename sequences automatically using specified data fields
Sequences » Rename sequences automatically using specified data fields
The following procedure lets you create labels for one or more selected sequences automatically, using specified fields such as sequence length, organism, or description. To rename sequences using specified data fields: Select one or more sequence names from any…
Part A: Add, rename and align sequences
Features » Try it! – Map features » Part A: Add, rename and align sequences
Before mapping features in MegAlign Pro, you first need to add and align the sequences. If you have not yet downloaded and extracted the tutorial data, click here to download it. Then decompress (unzip) the file archive using the method of your choice. If a…
Add only sequences that meet filtering thresholds
Sequences » Add only sequences that meet filtering thresholds
You can specify a group of sequences to add and then use filtering options to only add a subset of those to the project. To add only sequences that meet filtering thresholds: Open the filter dialog by doing any of the following: From the Welcome screen, select New…
Add multi-segment sequences to a project
Sequences » Add multi-segment sequences to a project
Sequences that consist of more than one chromosome, contig, or fragment are called multi-segment sequences. By entering a group of sequences into MegAlign Pro using a special command, the entire data set will be concatenated end-to-end and treated as a…
Merge unaligned sequences into an existing alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Modify a multiple alignment » Merge unaligned sequences into an existing alignment
To merge unaligned sequences into the current project’s existing alignment: In contrast to the “Profile alignment” method, this method retains existing gaps, and adds new gaps, if necessary. Add sequences to the project and align some or all of…
When a portion of multiple sequences is selected
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When a portion of multiple sequences is selected
When a portion of multiple aligned sequences has been selected (e.g., by triple-clicking on a feature, or by dragging across the consensus sequence with the mouse), the Details panel contains the following information: Heading Sequences –…
Try it! – Add and align multi-segment sequences
Sequences » Add multi-segment sequences to a project » Try it! – Add and align multi-segment sequences
The following video tutorial describes how to add multi-segment sequences and then align them using the MUSCLE multiple alignment algorithm. If you have not yet downloaded and extracted the tutorial data, click here to download it. Then decompress (unzip) the file…
Align selected unaligned sequences with an existing alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Modify a multiple alignment » Align selected unaligned sequences with an existing alignment
In some cases, you may have already aligned sequences, then decide to completely realign the same sequences plus certain selected unaligned sequences. To align selected unaligned sequences with an existing alignment: Add sequences to the project and align some or…
Part A: Add genomic sequences using drag & drop
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a genomic alignment with Mauve » Part A: Add genomic sequences using drag & drop
If you have not yet downloaded and extracted the tutorial data, click here to download it. Then decompress (unzip) the file archive using the method of your choice. If a MegAlign Pro project is already open, choose File > New Alignment Project. Otherwise, launch…
Try it! – Perform a MUSCLE alignment with multi-segment sequences
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a MUSCLE alignment with multi-segment sequences
Sequences that consist of more than one chromosome, contig, or fragment are called multi-segment files. Suppose you want to string together the consensus sequences from all the contigs in an assembly, or chromosomes in a genome, or exons in a gene, etc. If you enter…
Add sequences from a saved project to an active project
Sequences » Add sequences from a saved project to an active project
To add sequences from a saved project to an active project: Choose File > Add Sequences and select a MegAlign Pro project file (.msa). All sequences in the .msa file will be added to the “Unaligned Sequences” area of the active project.
Part C: Change sequence names and rendering in the Sequences view
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a Clustal Omega alignment » Part C: Change sequence names and rendering in the Sequences view
In Part B, you looked at the Sequences view while learning the function of the "viewport." You will now explore the Sequences view in more depth. The Sequences view displays entered sequences and aligned sequences. Sequences selected in this view are simultaneously…
Create a new MegAlign Pro project
Create or Open a Project » Create a new MegAlign Pro project
To create a new MegAlign Pro project: Do any of the following: From the Welcome tab, click New Project on the left. Then choose one of the options on the right: New blank alignment project – Opens an empty project window. New alignment…
Try it! – Map features
Features » Try it! – Map features
Both MegAlign Pro and SeqNinja allow you to copy a single annotation, or all annotations from a source sequence to a target sequence. During the process, you may optionally filter features so as to include or exclude specific gene types. In this tutorial, you will…
Table view
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Table view
To access the Table view, perform a BLAST search. When the search is complete, the Text, Table and Pairwise views are displayed together in a single popup window that is separate from the main MegAlign Pro window. To reopen all three views at a later time, click on the…
Map features (copy features to another sequence)
Features » Map features (copy features to another sequence)
MegAlign Pro’s feature mapping lets you map a single annotation or all annotations from a source sequence to a target sequence. The sequences involved must have been previously aligned. During the process, you may optionally filter annotations so as to…
Search wizard: Options
Search for Sequences Online » Search for sequence matches (BLAST) » Search wizard: Options
The Options screen is the third of four screens in the BLAST Search wizard, and has two tabs: Selection and Matches. These tabs allow you to customize miscellaneous parameters relating to the BLAST search. Click the Selection tab to make it active. In the…
When a non-empty document is open
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When a non-empty document is open
If a document is open and contains sequences (whether they have been aligned or not) and nothing is selected, the Details panel contains the following information: Heading The project filename. Sequence type – DNA, RNA, or…
Modify a multiple alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Modify a multiple alignment
The following table describes ways to modify an initial multiple alignment: Task See this topic To realign a range of aligned sequences using different parameters or a different alignment engine Subalign sequences To merge two…
Export data to a file
Export » Export data to a file
Several commands in the File menu allow you to export alignments, distance matrices and phylogenetic trees, as well as aligned sequences and the consensus sequence. Unless you wish to export all sequences in the project, you must first make a selection. Command…
Manually specify sequence type
Sequences » Manually specify sequence type
When you add a sequence to a project, MegAlign Pro uses clues in the sequence file to ascertain whether it is DNA, RNA or protein. When uncertain, it will prompt you to supply the missing information as you add the sequences. If MegAlign Pro guesses incorrectly…
Add only the portion of sequence that corresponds to a feature
Sequences » Add only the portion of sequence that corresponds to a feature
This topic describes two methods that allow you to align only the portions of sequences the correspond to a particular gene or other feature. Other portions of the sequences are discarded or removed prior to alignment, making the alignment for that gene both faster and…
Overview
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Overview
The Overview provides a way to navigate within the sequences, no matter what type of sequences or alignment is used. In the case of genomic alignments generated by Mauve, the Overview also allows you to explore the relationships between multiple aligned blocks.…
MAFFT alignment options
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Multiple alignment methods and options » MAFFT alignment options
The MAFFT algorithm is for gene level alignment of either protein or nucleotide sequences. If you want to align a large number of sequences in MegAlign Pro, we recommend using this algorithm. As of the Lasergene 17.3 release (August 2021), MegAlign Pro uses MAFFT7.…
Perform an initial multiple alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Perform an initial multiple alignment
To perform the initial multiple sequence alignment: Select three or more sequences to align, or select nothing if you want to align all sequences. (Note: If you choose just two sequences, or if only two are present, you will be prompted to instead do a pairwise…
MegAlign Pro Interface
MegAlign Pro Interface
The following table describes components of the MegAlign Pro user interface, along with links to more in-depth information about each item: Item Description Menus The MegAlign Pro menus are: MegAlign Pro (available only on Macintosh),…
Notes regarding multiple alignments
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Perform an initial multiple alignment » Notes regarding multiple alignments
When performing a multiple alignment, take the following tips into consideration. Sequence order matters: The order in which sequences appear in the Overview and Sequences view may affect the results of the multiple sequence alignment. If you are not satisfied with…
Part B: Navigate using the Overview
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a Clustal Omega alignment » Part B: Navigate using the Overview
Observe that the sequence blocks in the Overview are now the same lengths. Sequence gaps are represented by gray coloring within the blocks. The light blue vertical column shown at the left of the green blocks, above, is a "viewport" showing which region is…
Perform a Pairwise Alignment
Perform a Pairwise Alignment
This application supports local, global and semi-global pairwise alignment methods. Pairwise alignments can only be performed when two sequences, and only two sequences, have been selected. A common workflow is to first perform a multiple alignment on an entire group…
Try it! – Perform a genomic alignment with Mauve
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a genomic alignment with Mauve
In this tutorial, you will be adding six nucleotide sequences to MegAlign Pro using drag & drop, and then aligning them with the Progressive Mauve algorithm. Drag and drop is a feature available in all Lasergene applications, and is useful for entering multiple…
Distance metric options
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Distance view » Distance metric options
To change the distance metric used to generate the Distance view table, click the Change Analysis Parameters tool ( ) in the Distance view. This opens the Analysis Options dialog where you can specify the Metric and Gap Treatment. Another way to access the same dialog…
Troubleshooting “wrong type” or “too long” errors
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Perform an initial multiple alignment » Troubleshooting “wrong type” or “too long” errors
Error message that sequences are the wrong type or are too long: After beginning an alignment, an error message will appear if the sequences are not of the appropriate type or are too long for the selected algorithm. If performing a MUSCLE or Clustal Omega alignment,…
Choose the Alignment Type
Choose the Alignment Type
Which is better, multiple or pairwise alignment? This question is difficult to answer because it very much depends on how the alignment is going to be used. Mechanistically, the best sequence alignment is the one that produces the fewest number of mismatches. That…
Make a Selection
Make a Selection
Depending on the view, you can select one or more sequences, any portion of a sequence, or a specific portion of sequence corresponding to a feature. The active selection is highlighted in light blue. The selection can then be copied to the clipboard, copied in a…
Clustal W alignment options
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Multiple alignment methods and options » Clustal W alignment options
The Clustal W algorithm is for gene level alignment of either protein or nucleotide sequences. To run a Clustal W alignment, select two or more sequences and choose Align > (Re)Align Using Clustal W. If you wish to change method options, instead choose Align > Align…
Move the cursor to a specific position
Search » Move the cursor to a specific position
To go to a specified position: Choose Edit > Go To (Pairwise) Position, use Ctrl/Cmd+J. If the project contains only aligned or only unaligned sequences, type in a number and click OK. If the project contains a mixture of aligned and unaligned sequences,…
Remove features
Features » Remove features
While features can only be mapped when all sequences involved have been aligned, features can be removed from a sequence before or after aligning. Feature removal is not reversible, so use caution when removing features, especially those from non-consensus…
Try It! – Follow a multiple alignment with Global pairwise alignments
Perform a Pairwise Alignment » Try It! – Follow a multiple alignment with Global pairwise alignments
This tutorial demonstrates a situation in which a pairwise alignment can help resolve a confusing placement of gaps within a multiple alignment. In this case, a multiple protein sequence alignment suggests that the protein sequence from a specific organism (Tupaia…
Multiple alignment methods and options
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Multiple alignment methods and options
MegAlign Pro offers both gene-level and genome-level multiple alignment algorithms. Gene-level alignment of either protein or nucleotide sequences: In general, the three gene-level aligners have higher accuracy than the genome-level (Mauve) aligner. They offer…
Ruler tracks
Tracks » Ruler tracks
To view consensus rulers: Blue consensus rulers number and tick any gaps found in the consensus. The visibility of consensus rulers in the Overview, Sequences view and Pairwise view is dependent on: Which boxes you check in the Tracks panel (see image below).…
Detect and remove outliers from the alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Detect and remove outliers from the alignment
After performing a multiple sequence alignment, you may wish to detect and remove outliers from the alignment. From the Distance view, select a reference sequence. Choose Distance > Order Sequences by Distance from Selection. By default, a heat map color scheme…
Clustal Omega alignment options
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Multiple alignment methods and options » Clustal Omega alignment options
The Clustal Omega algorithm is for gene level alignment of either protein or nucleotide sequences. To run a Clustal W alignment, select two or more sequences and choose Align > (Re)Align Using Clustal Omega. If you wish to change method options, instead choose Align >…
Part B: Replace a sequence in the Overview and view the phylogenetic tree
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a MUSCLE alignment with multi-segment sequences » Part B: Replace a sequence in the Overview and view the phylogenetic tree
In the Overview, look for the longest segment and the longest gap region (shown in gray) in each sequence. Note that both of these are located on the left for "Rat," and on the right for all the other groups. These clues indicate that the segments for "Rat" were likely…
Features panel
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Features panel
The Features panel lets you specify which feature types should be visible in the Overview and the Sequences view once a sequence has been expanded. To open the Features panel: Click on the Features tab (). If the panel is not already visible, reveal it using any of…
Trim an Alignment
Trim an Alignment
After performing a multiple or pairwise alignment, you may wish to trim off one or both ends before realigning, saving or exporting. To trim one or both ends from an alignment: Perform a multiple sequence alignment then use either of the methods below: Use your…
Tracks
Tracks
“Tracks” are rows of information that can be displayed or hidden, as desired, in the Overview and Sequences view. Tracks can pertain to a header, footer, or individual sequence row. The following video provides a brief overview of how tracks are used in…
GC Content track
Tracks » GC Content track
To display the GC Content track: GC Content is a graph track with a scale from 0-100 showing the proportional amount of G or C residues in a sliding window of user-defined width. The visibility of GC Content tracks in the Sequences view is available only for…
Export the alignment report
Export » Export the alignment report
To export the alignment report for the selected block from a Mauve alignment, use File > Export Data > Alignment Report. To export the report for any other alignment type, use File > Export Data > Alignment Report. In both cases, the report is saved as a .txt file. …
Part A: Add and align multi-segment files
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a MUSCLE alignment with multi-segment sequences » Part A: Add and align multi-segment files
If you have not yet downloaded and extracted the tutorial data, click here to download it. Then decompress (unzip) the file archive using the method of your choice. If a MegAlign Pro project is already open, choose File > New Alignment Project > Blank Document.…
Sequence Logo track
Tracks » Sequence Logo track
To display the Sequence Logo track: To display or hide the Sequence Logo track in the Sequences view footer, perform an alignment and then check or uncheck the Sequence Logo box in the Tracks panel. This box is only visible after performing an alignment. How…
Details panel
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel
The Details panel shows details of the application, selection or project. To open the Details panel: This panel is represented by a blue “information” icon (). If the panel is not already visible, reveal it using any of the following methods: Choose View >…
Tracks panel
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Tracks panel
The Tracks panel lets you manage the tracks displayed in the Overview and the Sequences view. To open the Tracks panel: Click on the Tracks tab (). If the panel is not already visible, reveal it using any of the following methods: Choose View > Tracks > Tracks…
Overview after aligning multiple genomes with Mauve
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Overview » Overview after aligning multiple genomes with Mauve
The Overview has different appearances, depending on the stage and workflow. A Mauve genome alignment results in a set of locally colinear blocks (LCBs), each of which is a conserved region across multiple sequences. In MegAlign Pro, these may be referred to as…
When one track is selected
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When one track is selected
If a single track has been selected in the Overview or Sequences view, the Details panel contains the following information. Heading Type of track (in blue). Summary – Basic information about what is displayed in the selected…
Overview after other alignments
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Overview » Overview after other alignments
The Overview has different appearances, depending on the stage and workflow. After aligning with a method other than Mauve, or after performing a Mauve alignment that results in a single aligned block, any blocks in the Overview will be green and will have the same…
Try it! – Determine the strain of an experimental viral genome sample
Phylogenetic Trees » Try it! – Determine the strain of an experimental viral genome sample
In this tutorial, you will use MegAlign Pro to compare an experimental SARS-CoV-2 sample to references sequences from four SARS-CoV-2 strains in order to see which strain is present in the sample. This type of analysis can be used with any viral genome samples that…
Welcome screen
MegAlign Pro Interface » Welcome screen
The Welcome “project” opens when you launch MegAlign Pro and is a central location for opening projects, searching NCBI databases, getting help, and much more. As you add projects, the Welcome “project” will remain as the leftmost tab unless you…
When no document, or a blank document, is open
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When no document, or a blank document, is open
When no document or only a blank document (one containing no sequences) is open, the Details panel displays links to help you get started in MegAlign Pro. Heading One or more links are available. The first three options are available for blank…
Translation track
Tracks » Translation track
To display the Translation track: Translation tracks in the Sequences view are available only for nucleotide (DNA) sequences, and are dependent on: Whether or not tracks are visible in the Sequences view. To display tracks, click on the plus sign next to the…
Using the Overview as a sequence navigation tool
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Overview » Using the Overview as a sequence navigation tool
The light blue vertical column in the Overview is a “viewport” showing the region currently being displayed in the Sequences view. There are a number of methods—all performed within the Overview—for using the slider to navigate to a particular region in the…
Tree view
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Tree view
The Tree view shows evolutionary relationships estimated from the multiple sequence alignment, and is calculated using the current tree-building algorithm and settings, and the currently-selected Distance metric. This view is only accessible after you have performed a…
Part D: View the phylogenetic tree
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Try it! – Perform a genomic alignment with Mauve » Part D: View the phylogenetic tree
*Note: The images in this section show examples of how the trees might appear. Your trees may have different arrangements or different branch lengths from the ones shown. The current names of each sequence originated from the accession numbers that were embedded in…
Part C: Use a Global pairwise alignment method
Perform a Pairwise Alignment » Try It! – Align transcripts to genes using Local and Global pairwise alignments » Part C: Use a Global pairwise alignment method
Since the Local pairwise alignment in Part B was not an improvement over the multiple alignments in Part A, you will now try a Global pairwise alignment. This type of alignment forces the ends of both sequences to be aligned. Click the gear icon on the Pairwise view…
Search for sequence matches (BLAST)
Search for Sequences Online » Search for sequence matches (BLAST)
The BLAST Search wizard is used to search a query sequence against one of NCBI’s databases. The sequence can be part or all of an active sequence, another sequence file on your computer, or typed/pasted-in text. The wizard consists of four consecutive screens,…
Sequence alignment vs. sequence assembly
Welcome to MegAlign Pro » Sequence alignment vs. sequence assembly
Sequence alignment and sequence assembly are very different workflows, but the terms are often used incorrectly. Adding to the confusion, both workflows can involve an optional “reference” sequence, and both can use some of the same sequence file types.…
Create or Open a Project
Create or Open a Project
Before you can add sequences to a project and align those sequences, you first need to create a MegAlign Pro project. If you already have a project from MegAlign Pro (or its predecessor, MegAlign), you can also open that to view or make changes. For details about each…
Distance view
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Distance view
The Distance view shows a matrix (i.e., table) of numbers representing distances computed for each pair of sequences for the selected aligned block. Sequence distances are used as input in creating the phylogenetic tree shown in the Tree view. Selections within the…
Trim an individual sequence
Sequences » Trim an individual sequence
Individual sequences in the project can be trimmed before or after alignment based on features or by direct selection. This is different from trimming the entire alignment, which affects all sequences in the project. To trim an individual sequence before or after…
Sequence section
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Style panel » Sequence section
To access options affecting the Sequences view and Pairwise view, click on the Style panel expand bar entitled Sequences, or choose View > Style > Sequences. Task How to… Select font options for the ruler numbers in the view Use the…
Available color schemes
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Style panel » Multiple Alignment section » Available color schemes
The Multiple alignment and Pairwise alignment sections allow you to select color schemes for sequences in the Sequences and Pairwise views, respectively. Each available color scheme is described below: Color Scheme Description Nucleotide Legend…
Pairwise view
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views » Pairwise view
The Pairwise view displays sequences after performing a pairwise alignment or a BLAST or Entrez database search. Sequence names selected in this view are simultaneously selected all other views in MegAlign Pro. Similarly, sequence names selected elsewhere will be…
Comparison of pairwise alignment methods
Perform a Pairwise Alignment » Comparison of pairwise alignment methods
The three types of alignment—Local, Global and Semi-Global—are actually quite similar, although they can often produce very different results. All use a method called dynamic programming to find the best scoring alignment between two sequences.…
Substitution matrices
Perform a Pairwise Alignment » Substitution matrices
A substitution matrix describes the rate at which a nucleotide or amino acid changes to another nucleotide or amino acid over time. When performing a pairwise alignment, you can specify the desired substitution matrix in the (Pairwise) Alignment Options…
Part A: Compare results from three multiple alignment methods
Perform a Pairwise Alignment » Try It! – Align transcripts to genes using Local and Global pairwise alignments » Part A: Compare results from three multiple alignment methods
This part of the tutorial demonstrates that if you don’t have annotations to rely on for validating multiple alignments, a pairwise alignment is a good alternative. This tutorial uses a default MUSCLE alignment of the Drosophila melanogaster ADH gene and the…
Pairwise Alignment section
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Style panel » Pairwise Alignment section
To access options affecting the display of pairwise alignments in the Pairwise view, click on the Style panel expand bar entitled Pairwise Alignment, or choose View > Style > Pairwise Alignment. Task How To Specify the wrapping style for rows…
Perform a Multiple Alignment
Perform a Multiple Alignment
MegAlign Pro supports the following multiple alignment methods: Clustal Omega, Clustal W, MAFFT, MUSCLE and Mauve. Click here for descriptions and a comparison of the different methods. To learn how to perform, modify, and troubleshoot multiple alignments, see the…
MegAlign Pro Tutorials
MegAlign Pro Tutorials
MegAlign Pro tutorials appear in the table of contents just under corresponding help topics. In addition, each tutorial is also listed below. Miscellaneous tutorials: Add and align multi-segment sequences Map features Multiple alignment…
Open an existing MegAlign Pro project
Create or Open a Project » Open an existing MegAlign Pro project
To open an existing MegAlign Pro project (.msa): Do any of the following: From the Welcome tab, click Open Project on the left. Then use the options on the right to Open alignment project or open a recent document. Drag an .msa file from the file explorer…
MUSCLE alignment options
Perform a Multiple Alignment » Multiple alignment methods and options » MUSCLE alignment options
The MUSCLE algorithm is for gene level alignment of either protein or nucleotide sequences. To run a MUSCLE alignment, select two or more sequences and choose Align > (Re)Align Using MUSCLE. If you wish to change method options, instead choose Align > Align with…
Print Images
Print Images
To print an image of any MegAlign Pro view, whether it is currently active or not: Choose File > Print or use Ctrl/Cmd+P. The Print Document dialog opens: Use the Printer drop-down menu to choose the desired printer from a list of available…
Gap Fraction track
Tracks » Gap Fraction track
To display the Gap Fraction track: Gap Fraction is a graph track with a scale of 0-1 that shows the proportion of gapped positions in a sliding window centered on each position. The availability of a Gap Fraction track in the Sequences view or Pairwise view is…
Views
MegAlign Pro Interface » Views
The left side of the MegAlign Pro window is comprised of one or more “views.” To learn more about the types of views and how to change their appearances, click the links below. View types: Overview Sequences view Pairwise view Distance view Tree…
When one feature is selected
MegAlign Pro Interface » Panels » Details panel » When one feature is selected
If a single feature has been selected in a track in the Overview or Sequences view (e.g., by clicking one time on the feature), the Details panel contains the following information: Heading Feature name (in blue). Type – Feature type. Left…
Part B: Map a single feature
Features » Try it! – Map features » Part B: Map a single feature
In this part of the tutorial, you will map a single selected feature from the source sequence to the target sequence. In order to choose the appropriate mapping command, you will need to know where the source and target sequences appear in relation to one another in…