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Uniform Web Services API

Background

Web services is a standard way to access remote functionality cross-platform, and assemble applications. We have several data types accessed by atlases: microarray data, 2D images, 3D volumes, surfaces, segmentations, annotations, phenotype/behavioral data, FMRI, time series, etc. Some of these data types have common representation models (e.g. MAGE). These models are typically large and exist in multiple incarnations. The level of detail they provide often is not needed for data discovery and common data access and integration tasks. So it would be useful to envelope such data in a common set of services that would expose the most essential data characteristics and represent the common denominator queries against each particular data type (e.g. getGenes, getProbes, getStructures...) that any dataset of this type shall respond to. Such services would support multiple clients, including atlases, BDR interface, mediator, etc.

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Goals

1. Develop a set of web service signatures for each data type.
2. Return data/result sets in a common schema.

Web Service Signatures

Feature Requests

1. Ability to mix "AND" and "OR" in queries
   • (currently all queries assume "AND" of all parameters)
   • might need a "language" to specify query
2. Ability to request "pages" of results
   • for example, show me the first 10 results
   • similar to most search engine results

DataType API

1. 2D, 3D data
   XCEDE API (suggested by XCEDE GROUP) or visit Slice3:Remote Data Handling Page for more info
   1. Tree Functions

      (Get/Put)	Service	Application	Description	Input Parameters	Output	Implementations
      Get	Projects		Returns list of projects
      Get	Project		Returns high level project information	Project core elements
      Get	Project Detail		Returns full XML document for a project	Project identifier
      Get	Subjects		Returns list of subjects	Project identifier (O); Experimental Group
      Get	Subject		Returns high level subject information	Subject Identifier
      	Subject Detail		Returns full XML document for a subject	Subject Identifier
      Get	Visits
      Get	Visit
      Get	Visit Detail
      Get	Studies
      Get	Get Study
      Get	Get Study Detail
      Get	Series
      Get	Get Series
      Get	Get Series Detail
      Get	Data Acquisitions
      Get	Get Data Acquisition
      Get	Get Data Acquisition Detail
      Get	Assessments		Get list of assessments	none; Project ID; Subject ID
      Get	Assessment Detail		Get information on an assessment	Assessment ID
      Get	Assessment Data		Get data on assessments	pairing of subject ID(s) and assessment ID(s)

   2. Digest Functions

      (Get/Put)	Service	Application	Description	Input Parameters	Output	Implementations
      Get	Subject		Get a simplified return of information on a subject	Subject ID	column for subject id, concept, value, observer, pointer, where information came from (e.g. RDF triple)
      Get	Group of Images		Get a simplified return of information on a collection (e.g. study) of images

   3. Query Functions

      (Get/Put)	Service	Application	Description	Input Parameters	Output	Implementations
      Get	Visits by Assessment and Data Available		Returns a list of visits based on assessments (collected that visit and/or overall) and by data available for that visit.

   4. Data Functions

      (Get/Put)	Service	Application	Description	Input Parameters	Output	Implementations
      get	data size estimate
      get	Data

   5. Utility Functions

      (Get/Put)	Service	Application	Description	Input Parameters	Output	Implementations
      Get methods			return lists of identifiers, you can iterate through them to retrieve additional content
      General Format		(arbitrary for single DB queries, undefined return for multi-site/DB queries) + + (required for multi-site/DB queries)
      get	Webservice Functions Supported		Returns a list of available functions from webservice

2. Microarray data

   Methods Summary
   getGenes(String geneCode, String geneName, String geneFunction, String keyWord)       Get the gene information by either gene code, gene name, gene function or keyword.
   getProbe(String ProbesID String geneName, String geneCode)       Get the probe information by either probe id, gene code, or gene name.
   getStructures(String structureName, String geneCode, String geneName)       Get the gene information by either gene code, gene name, gene function or keyword.

Available Common Schema

XCEDE

XCEDE is the common schema providing access to BIRN databases. HID and the emerging AIDB are being wrapped in XCEDE (see http://www.na-mic.org/Wiki/index.php/Slicer3:Remote_Data_Handling), and - as deployed at BIRN-CC: http://bcc-dev-mediator.nbirn.net:8080/axis/services/HidQuerierWS?wsdl. Web services are being written against XCEDE, so both HID and AIDB will be accessible through XCEDE web services. The goal, therefore, is to route common metadata requests against gene expression, 2d images, 3d volumes data, in XCEDE, and extend XCEDE to support additional requests.

• more info ...
• XCEDE Xwiki Page

MAGE-ML/FUGE/MAGEv2

MAGE-ML is derived from Microarray Gene Expression Object Model (MAGE-OM), which is developed and described using the Unified Modelling Language (UML. MAGE-ML is by purpose used to describe microarray designs, microarray manufacturing information, microarray experiment setup and execution information, gene expression data and data analysis results.

MAGEv2 is being built on top of FuGE as an extension to add in microarray specific classes (extending Data as ArrayDesign, DesignElementData, etc, Material as Array, QPCRPlate, etc, and DimensionElement as DesignElement extended by Feature, Reporter, and CompositeElement).

• more info ...
• FUGE Home Page
• MAGE Home Page

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Issues

The issues include (for gene expression data – but extrapolate to 2d and 3d data):

1. figure out how search requests and outputs as implemented in MBAT (http://www.loni.ucla.edu/twiki/bin/view/MouseBIRN/WebServices), MA module in BIRN (http://microarray.nbirn.net/), and GN (http://www.genenetwork.org/CGIDoc.html), map to XCEDE
2. Examine MAGE and see how the same requests and output can be expressed in MAGE. Then, depending on the results of (1), either abandon MAGE in favor of XCEDE, or include MAGE constructs in XCEDE wrappers for gene expression sources (as a foreign namespace?). This shall be done vis-à-vis common information requirements of client applications (e.g. GetProbes^?, GetGenes^?, GetStructures^?, etc.)
3. In parallel, review the schema used in the MA module, for whether it sufficiently reflects information model for GE data, and update as necessary
4. Make sure the mediator can connect with XCEDE sources, be it a database source or a web source in XCEDE wrapper (see http://mediator.nbirn.net:8080/axis/services/MedTestBService?wsdl – this would involve passing web service calls via the ExecuteQuery^? method, and conversion between XCEDE and mediator’s recordset)
5. Results of mapping the common requests to XCEDE (in (1) and (2)) shall be discussed at testbed AHMs this spring. At the same time, identify additional sources or databases to be wrapped in the same API. Then finalize the signatures (mid-Summer?)
6. Make sure terms used in queries and in the output, are tagged with BIRNLex terms (e.g. develop controlled vocabularies for each term)
7. Implement web services for the GN and MA module (incl testing/deployment) (by the fall AHM)
8. Based on results of (3), update data publication tools (i.e. software for loading data from common CSV and text files into the MA module), make sure controlled vocabularies are enforced (by the fall AHM);
9. By the fall AHM – make sure AIDB’s XCEDE wrapper supports the services as well.
10. Publish and document web services; develop a series of examples of how they can be called from various programming environments and applications