Louca lab, UO

Functional Annotation of Prokaryotic Taxa (FAPROTAX)
FAPROTAX is a database that maps prokaryotic clades (e.g. genera or species) to established metabolic or other ecologically relevant functions, using the current literature on cultured strains. FAPROTAX includes software for converting taxonomic microbial community profiles (e.g. in the form of an OTU table) into putative functional profiles, based on taxa identified in a sample.
FAPROTAX facts: Over 80 functions such as nitrate respiration, methanogenesis, fermentation or plant pathogenesis. Over 7600 functional annotations covering over 4600 taxa. Utilized literature includes Begrey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology, The Prokaryotes and The International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology.
Potential FAPROTAX applications: Ecological interpretation of 16S marker gene data. Cheaper alternative to environmental shotgun sequencing (metagenomics) for functional community profiling. Complementary to metagenomics, e.g. resolving ambiguities in the interpretation of community gene content. Rapid identification of taxonomic groups in a sample with particular metabolic phenotypes (e.g. all known or putative methanogens). FAPROTAX, including associated software, is free and available here. Please consult the License agreement prior to downloading FAPROTAX. Please cite FAPROTAX if you use it for a scientific publication.