What is Reactome?

Reactome is a free, manually curated knowledge base that provides a user-friendly platform to access and analyse information on molecular mechanisms of reactions and pathways. It provides elaborate details on reactions and pathways in various useful formats including expert-reviewed texts, interactive diagrams and structured hierarchies. This wealth of information is complemented by a range of analysis tools that allow users to investigate experimental data. Reactome allows the export of information and analysis results in standard formats for further analysis.

Why do we need Reactome?

Life at the molecular level is an intricate network of protein interactions and biochemical reactions. Pathways, a series of connected events, are different modules of this network typically characterised by the product or biological outcome. Some examples include signal transduction, transport, DNA replication, protein synthesis, and intermediary metabolism. Although this pathway information can be accessed via scientific literature, textbooks, or electronic databases, data is of variable quality and is largely unavailable for computational re-use. There is a need for a comprehensive and reliable resource that presents pathway knowledge via a user-friendly platform to access and analyse information on molecular mechanisms. Reactome addressed this need by providing high quality curated pathway information in an easy-to-use interface containing graphical and interactive features to browse and analyse data.