When you receive your Koko Genetics results, you see a beautiful report, easy to understand and full of curiosities about your furry friend’s breed, traits and health. But did you know that behind that report there is an immense database?
At Koko Genetics, we believe that your pet’s genetic information belongs to you. That is why we make the Raw Data available to you: the original and unprocessed file that comes directly from our laboratory.
What exactly is genetic Raw Data?
The Raw Data for dogs and cats is a digital file containing the complete reading of your pet’s genotyping. Imagine it as the “negative” of a photograph or the raw ingredients before cooking the final dish.
This file includes information on all the genetic markers present on the chip (array) we use in the laboratory, not just those that appear in your results report. We are talking about a massive reading of nucleotides (the DNA letters) exactly as detected by our technology.
Being “raw” data, it has not passed through the specific interpretation filter or quality control that we apply to generate the health and traits reports. It is purely technical information.
What information does this file contain?
When downloading your Raw Data, you will get a file in .csv format (compressed in a .zip due to its large size) with tens of thousands of markers. Each line represents a specific point in your pet’s genome.
So you can interpret it like an expert, here is the guide to understanding the columns of your file:
- ID (Probe ID): This is the identifier of the probe on our chip (Axiom Koko Array). It is like the “technical name” of that marker.
- Chromosome: Indicates where that genetic variant lives.
- Position: The exact place within the chromosome where the marker is. For this, we use the CanFam 3.1 reference genome (the current scientific standard) for dogs, and Felis catus_9.0 for cats.
- Genotype: Here is the “nitty-gritty”. You will see combinations of two letters (alleles) that can be A, T, G, C. If you see an I or a D, they refer to Insertions or Deletions.
- If a hyphen (–) appears, it means that the genotype could not be determined for that specific marker.
What is the use of having the Raw Data?
You might ask yourself: “If I already have my nice report, why do I want a giant spreadsheet?”. Here are three reasons:
- Total transparency: You have access to the same base information as us.
- Own research: If you are an advanced user or a vet, you can search for specific variants that are of interest to you.
- Compatibility: As of today, there are no other companies or external platforms that allow the uploading and processing of Raw Data files for dogs or cats. However, given the pace at which the sector is advancing, it is possible that the landscape will change and new possibilities will arise in the future, so at Koko Genetics we are prepared to adapt to that great leap.
Step by step: How to download your pet’s Raw Data
Getting hold of this file is very simple and totally free for Koko Genetics users. Just follow these steps:
- Log in to your Koko Genetics account.
- Go to your Private Area.
- Click on the Settings section.
- Select the Raw Data option.
- A .zip file will be automatically generated and downloaded. You just have to unzip it on your computer to access the .csv or .txt and view the data.
To have access to this level of detail (and their Raw Data file), you first need to genotype your best friend. Our DNA test for dogs and cats is the gateway to their biology.