Robert Stevens,
Carole A. Goble and
Sean Bechhofer
Department of Computer Science and School of Biological Sciences
University of Manchester
Oxford Road
Manchester
M13 9PL
robert.stevens carole seanb@cs.man.ac.uk
This paper aims to introduce the reader to the use of ontologies within bioinformatics. A description of the type of knowledge held in an ontology will be given. The paper will be illustrated throughout with examples taken from bioinformatics and molecular biology, and a survey of current biological ontologies will be presented. From this it will be seen that the use to which the ontology is put largely determines the content of the ontology. Finally, the paper will describe the process of building an ontology, introducing the reader to the techniques and methods currently in use and the open research questions in ontology development.