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BioTransfer Blog

Bioinformatics tutorials for biologists — file formats, workflows and concepts — plus guides to the free BioTransfer tools.

Bioinformatics Tutorials

2 posts

Plain-language explainers on the file formats, workflows, and concepts behind sequencing analysis — written for biologists.

GEO · Data downloadJuly 22, 2026

How to Download Raw Sequencing Data (FASTQ) from a GEO Dataset

GEO stores processed data — the raw FASTQ reads live in SRA/ENA. This guide explains the GSE → SRA → ENA → FASTQ chain, why the RAW.tar rarely holds reads, and the one-hop shortcut to raw sequencing data for any GEO series (no sra-tools needed).

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File formats · SequencingJuly 17, 2026

From FASTQ to Results: The File Formats Behind Every Sequencing Analysis

Running the command was never the hard part — knowing what flows through the pipeline is. A biologist’s field guide to FASTQ, BAM/CRAM, VCF, GTF/GFF, BED, count matrices and single-cell formats: what each file holds, where it comes from, and where it goes next.

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Tool Guides

3 posts

How to get the most out of the free BioTransfer tools.

Open Targets · Drug discoveryJuly 15, 2026

Gene → Disease → Drug: Explore Open Targets Without the Platform Overhead

Which drugs hit my gene? What are the top druggable genes for my disease? Which drugs target this pathway? A free, honest layer over the Open Targets Platform answers each in one search — gene, disease, or signalling pathway — with every row linked back to the source. No login.

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GEO · Dataset searchJuly 15, 2026

Searching NCBI GEO Without Losing an Afternoon — Ranked Results & Direct Download Links

GEO's native search returns thousands of poorly-ranked, duplicate-heavy hits and buries download links in FTP folders. The free GEO Dataset Finder ranks datasets by relevance, groups SuperSeries clutter, and surfaces direct NCBI download links — including per-sample files. No login.

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qPCR · Primer designJuly 2, 2026

Design qPCR Primers in Seconds — Free, Exon-Junction-Aware, UCSC-Verified

Type a gene name, get validated qPCR primers instantly — Primer3-designed over RefSeq mRNA, exon-junction-spanning, with one-click UCSC In-Silico PCR verification. Free, human & mouse, now inside ChatGPT and Claude too.

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