UniProt Query Syntax Reference

UniProt Query Syntax Reference

Comprehensive guide to UniProt search query syntax for constructing complex searches.

Basic Syntax

Simple Queries

insulin
kinase

Field-Specific Searches

gene:BRCA1
accession:P12345
organism_name:human
protein_name:kinase

Boolean Operators

AND (both terms must be present)

insulin AND diabetes
kinase AND human
gene:BRCA1 AND reviewed:true

OR (either term can be present)

diabetes OR insulin
(cancer OR tumor) AND human

NOT (exclude terms)

kinase NOT human
protein_name:kinase NOT organism_name:mouse

Grouping with Parentheses

(diabetes OR insulin) AND reviewed:true
(gene:BRCA1 OR gene:BRCA2) AND organism_id:9606

Common Search Fields

Identification

• accession:P12345 - UniProt accession number
• id:INSR_HUMAN - Entry name
• gene:BRCA1 - Gene name
• gene_exact:BRCA1 - Exact gene name match

Organism/Taxonomy

• organism_name:human - Organism name
• organism_name:"Homo sapiens" - Exact organism name (use quotes for multi-word)
• organism_id:9606 - NCBI taxonomy ID
• taxonomy_id:9606 - Same as organism_id
• taxonomy_name:"Homo sapiens" - Taxonomy name

Protein Information

• protein_name:insulin - Protein name
• protein_name:"insulin receptor" - Exact protein name
• reviewed:true - Only Swiss-Prot (reviewed) entries
• reviewed:false - Only TrEMBL (unreviewed) entries

Sequence Properties

• length:[100 TO 500] - Sequence length range
• mass:[50000 TO 100000] - Molecular mass in Daltons
• sequence:MVLSPADKTNVK - Exact sequence match
• fragment:false - Exclude fragment sequences

Gene Ontology (GO)

• go:0005515 - GO term ID (0005515 = protein binding)
• go_f:* - Any molecular function
• go_p:* - Any biological process
• go_c:* - Any cellular component

Annotations

• annotation:(type:signal) - Has signal peptide annotation
• annotation:(type:transmem) - Has transmembrane region
• cc_function:* - Has function comment
• cc_interaction:* - Has interaction comment
• ft_domain:* - Has domain feature

Database Cross-References

• xref:pdb - Has PDB structure
• xref:ensembl - Has Ensembl reference
• database:pdb - Same as xref
• database:(type:pdb) - Alternative syntax

Protein Families and Domains

• family:"protein kinase" - Protein family
• keyword:"Protein kinase" - Keyword annotation
• cc_similarity:* - Has similarity comment

Range Queries

Numeric Ranges

length:[100 TO 500]          # Between 100 and 500
mass:[* TO 50000]            # Less than or equal to 50000
created:[2023-01-01 TO *]   # Created after Jan 1, 2023

Date Ranges

created:[2023-01-01 TO 2023-12-31]
modified:[2024-01-01 TO *]

Wildcards

Single Character (?)

gene:BRCA?      # Matches BRCA1, BRCA2, etc.

Multiple Characters (*)

gene:BRCA*      # Matches BRCA1, BRCA2, BRCA1P1, etc.
protein_name:kinase*
organism_name:Homo*

Advanced Searches

Existence Queries

cc_function:*              # Has any function annotation
ft_domain:*                # Has any domain feature
xref:pdb                   # Has PDB structure

Combined Complex Queries

# Human reviewed kinases with PDB structure
(protein_name:kinase OR family:kinase) AND organism_id:9606 AND reviewed:true AND xref:pdb

# Cancer-related proteins excluding mice
(disease:cancer OR keyword:cancer) NOT organism_name:mouse

# Membrane proteins with signal peptides
annotation:(type:transmem) AND annotation:(type:signal) AND reviewed:true

# Recently updated human proteins
organism_id:9606 AND modified:[2024-01-01 TO *] AND reviewed:true

Field-Specific Examples

Protein Names

protein_name:"insulin receptor"    # Exact phrase
protein_name:insulin*              # Starts with insulin
recommended_name:insulin           # Recommended name only
alternative_name:insulin           # Alternative names only

Genes

gene:BRCA1                        # Gene symbol
gene_exact:BRCA1                  # Exact gene match
olnName:BRCA1                     # Ordered locus name
orfName:BRCA1                     # ORF name

Organisms

organism_name:human               # Common name
organism_name:"Homo sapiens"      # Scientific name
organism_id:9606                  # Taxonomy ID
lineage:primates                  # Taxonomic lineage

Features

ft_signal:*                       # Signal peptide
ft_transmem:*                     # Transmembrane region
ft_domain:"Protein kinase"        # Specific domain
ft_binding:*                      # Binding site
ft_site:*                         # Any site

Comments (cc_)

cc_function:*                     # Function description
cc_catalytic_activity:*           # Catalytic activity
cc_pathway:*                      # Pathway involvement
cc_interaction:*                  # Protein interactions
cc_subcellular_location:*         # Subcellular location
cc_tissue_specificity:*           # Tissue specificity
cc_disease:cancer                 # Disease association

Tips and Best Practices

1. Use quotes for exact phrases: organism_name:"Homo sapiens" not organism_name:Homo sapiens

2. Filter by review status: Add AND reviewed:true for high-quality Swiss-Prot entries

3. Combine wildcards carefully: *kinase* may be too broad; kinase* is more specific

4. Use parentheses for complex logic: (A OR B) AND (C OR D) is clearer than A OR B AND C OR D

5. Numeric ranges are inclusive: length:[100 TO 500] includes both 100 and 500

6. Field prefixes: Learn common prefixes:

   • cc_ = Comments
   • ft_ = Features
   • go_ = Gene Ontology
   • xref_ = Cross-references

7. Check field names: Use the API's /configure/uniprotkb/result-fields endpoint to see all available fields

Query Validation

Test queries using:

• Web interface: https://www.uniprot.org/uniprotkb
• API: https://rest.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/search?query=YOUR_QUERY
• API documentation: https://www.uniprot.org/help/query-fields

Common Patterns

Find well-characterized proteins

reviewed:true AND xref:pdb AND cc_function:*

Find disease-associated proteins

cc_disease:* AND organism_id:9606 AND reviewed:true

Find proteins with experimental evidence

existence:"Evidence at protein level" AND reviewed:true

Find secreted proteins

cc_subcellular_location:secreted AND reviewed:true

Find drug targets

keyword:"Pharmaceutical" OR keyword:"Drug target"

Resources

• Full query field reference: https://www.uniprot.org/help/query-fields
• API query documentation: https://www.uniprot.org/help/api_queries
• Text search documentation: https://www.uniprot.org/help/text-search