Category: Tips

  • Viewing raw chromatogram data from .ab1 files

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    Chris
    in

    If you are interested in looking for or evaluating mixtures of residues in .ab1 or .scf chromatogram files, it is important to be able to extract the raw data from the four traces. You can open .ab1 and .scf files directly in MacVector by using the File | Open menu item or by dragging files…

  • The easiest way to get graphics out of MacVector

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    Chris
    in

    You can use MacVector to create beautiful graphical representations of sequences with control over colors, patterns, fonts, symbols and many other aspects of the layout. The easiest way to get the graphics into another application is to simply choose Edit | Copy, switch to the target application and then choose Edit | Paste. The graphics…

  • Restriction enzyme sites and tooltips

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    Chris
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    Quickly viewing the recognition sequence and cut site of a restriction site is very easy in the Map tab. If you hover your mouse over a restriction site in the Map tab, a tooltip will show you the restriction enzyme recognition site, the location of the cut site, and number of times that enzyme cuts…

  • How to reset the numbering after pasting a DNA fragment

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    Chris
    in

    When you copy a section from a long sequence and paste it into a new MacVector window, the original numbering from the original sequence is retained. This is very useful if you want to work on a shorter segment of a genome without losing the original numbering. However, sometimes it is preferable to have the…

  • How to remove gaps from a sequence

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    Chris
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    There are often times when you end up with a sequence containing gaps, especially if you make extensive use of the Align To Reference, Contig Assembly or Multiple Sequence Alignment interfaces to generate consensus sequences. You can select and copy the consensus sequence, or even individual aligned reads, from the Align To Reference and Contig…

  • How to automatically annotate bare sequences

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    Chris
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    If you have an unannotated vector or other sequence that you’ve been sent from a sequencing lab, downloaded from a web page or been sent by a colleague, it can be very tedious to manually create all the features that you believe are present on the sequence – assuming you even know what is supposed…

  • How to display translations in the sequence editor

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    Chris
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    For those of you who like to type in DNA sequences, or do manual editing to the sequences, it’s really useful to be able to see the translations above or below the sequence residues in the Editor tab of the single sequence window. If you are a long term user, you’ll be familiar with the…

  • Subscribe to Weekly Tips

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    by

    Chris
    in ,

    MacVector is designed to be easy to use. Nonetheless there’s a lot of tools and it’s a flaw in most of us that we only stick to doing, what we already how to do. In our busy lives finding time for learning how to do something more efficiently never climbs that growing todo list too…

  • Use the [option] key to paste, or ligate, in the opposite orientation

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    by

    Chris
    in

    The most simple way of generating new constructs in MacVector using restriction enzyme sites is to: [shift]-select two sites in the Map tab of a source molecule. Switch to the Map tab of a target vector. Select the corresponding site(s) there. Simply choose Edit | Paste to insert the copied fragment into the target molecule.…

  • View sequences at the residue level in the Map tab

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    by

    Chris
    in

    Many MacVector users do not realize that you can view sequences at the residue level in the Map tab as well as the Editor tab. This has the advantage that you can see restriction enzyme cut sites (including staggered sticky ends) along with the graphical display of features aligned to the residues. You can even…