Advances in colored k-mer sets: essentials for the curious

Camille Marchet

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arXiv · 2409.05214

Advances in colored k-mer sets: essentials for the curious

Camille Marchet

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Abstract

This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent advancements in k-mer-based data structures representing collections of several samples (sometimes called colored de Bruijn graphs) and their applications in large-scale sequence indexing and pangenomics. The review explores the evolution of k-mer set representations, highlighting the trade-offs between exact and inexact methods, as well as the integration of compression strategies and modular implementations. I discuss the impact of these structures on practical applications and describe recent utilization of these methods for analysis. By surveying the state-of-the-art techniques and identifying emerging trends, this work aims to guide researchers in selecting and developing methods for large scale and reference-free genomic data. For a broader overview of k-mer set representations and foundational data structures, see the accompanying article on practical k-mer sets.

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Camille Marchet. 2024-09-08. Advances in colored k-mer sets: essentials for the curious. https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.05214

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