What is a GFF file?
GFF (General feature format) file is a simple tab-delimited text file. It’s used for describing genomic features. The files are primarily associated with signal map. The signal map usually reads and displays standard GFF files which are generated from nimbleGen custom microarrays. Many bioinformatics programs present transcripts and genes in the GFF format. These file use .gff extension, and a user can open it in Mac, iPhone, Windows, or android. The file format is used for describing genes and also other format features of DNA, RNA, and other appropriate software. The GFF files contain One line per feature, with each feature comprising of columns of data and optional track definition lines.
There are numerous, but slightly different GFF file formats. Examples include GFF3 and GTF2 (Gene Transfer Format) file format, which are supported by IGV. GTF2 file is used primarily for grouping alternative transcripts under a gene identifier. GFF3 is used in specifying common gene name abbreviations.
How to Make GFF Files
Below are some software programs that can open GFF files. Download one to open your file now.