genoomid

Genoomid is a proposed universal identifier for genomic data objects intended to enable unambiguous citation across genomic databases. It would cover genome assemblies, annotations, and derived resources. As of 2024, genoomid is not an established standard; this article describes a proposed concept and its potential use.

Rationale and scope: In current practice, researchers cite various identifiers such as accession numbers and metadata, which can complicate cross-database integration and reproducibility. A genoomid would provide a persistent, versioned handle that remains usable across database migrations and updates, supporting more reliable data linking and meta-analyses.

Format and components: A genoomid typically encodes information about the organism, the dataset type, the assembly or annotation version, and a release identifier. A typical form might be GNM-Hsapiens-GRCh38.1.2 or GNM-Ecoli-K12-MG1655-assembly-2024. The exact syntax would be standardized by a governing body and would be accompanied by metadata describing provenance and rights.

Governance and adoption: Proponents envision a central registry run by a coalition of major genomic data centers that would mint genoomids for registered objects and attach metadata such as organism taxonomy, dataset type, repository, version history, license, and provenance. The goal would be to complement existing identifiers rather than replace them.

Advantages and challenges: Benefits include improved citation reliability, easier cross-database search, and better alignment with FAIR data principles. Challenges include establishing governance, preventing version fragmentation, mapping legacy records, and ensuring interoperability with legacy identifiers and workflows.

See also: GenBank accession numbers, European Nucleotide Archive (ENA) IDs, INSDC records, persistent identifiers.