The International Sequencing Consortium (ISC) has launched a free, online resource where scientists and the public can get the latest information on the status of sequencing projects for animal, plant and other eukaryotic genomes, the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) has announced.

The new resource can be accessed through ISC's home page, http://www.intlgenome.org. The database enables users to quickly sort sequencing project information by organism, by sequencing group or by funding agency.

Information about each sequencing project includes timetables for completion, along with brief descriptions of sequencing strategies being employed. In many cases, the database also features links to the individual sequencing projects' Web sites and the sites of their funding agencies, such as NHGRI. Also available are links to other publicly run databases where the actual DNA sequence data is deposited.

The ISC was established in 2002 to provide a worldwide forum for genomic sequencing groups and their funding agencies to share information, coordinate research efforts and address common issues raised by genomic sequencing, such as data release and data quality.