What we do
At Seanome, we build open-source software to annotate proteins of unknown function. As »99% of proteins on the planet are of unknown function, we are solving a problem with immense potential to transform life as we know it.
Kmerseek: A blazing-fast protein function predictor
Seanome’s Kmerseek bridges the evolutionary gap between marine and human genomes. By using novel computational methods that speed up analysis ~1000x and allow us to compare proteins across vastly different species, Kmerseek finds similarities between proteins that other tools can’t see.
nf-core/proteinannotator: The best protein annotation pipeline in the world
An astounding 14 quadrillion potential proteins exist in the world. Scientists have functionally annotated ~500,000 of those proteins in UniProtKB through exceptional manual effort. However, these annotations are biased toward well-studied organisms, undersampling billions of species. Manual curation cannot realistically annotate all proteins on the scale of the Earth, and at Seanome, our vision is to create the best protein annotator for any organism. As no tool will perfectly annotate all proteins, we’re building the nf-core/proteinannotator pipeline as a “wisdom of crowds” approach across methods like DIAMOND-blastp, InterProScan, HMMer, FoldSeek, and emerging tools like Kmerseek. This work supports the broader scientific community’s efforts to catalog and understand global biodiversity through large-scale sequencing projects.
Initial Application: Arctic Clams
Seanome is first applying Kmerseek to Arctic clams, which have already solved multiple human problems: they can live for hundreds of years, regenerate their shells (if we could regenerate our skulls and spine like clams, we could add 5-15 years of healthy human life), and outsmarted a chronic nerve pain disease (neuropathy) affecting ~20 million people in the US+EU, a $93.9B/yr market.
Future Applications
Health
The next cure for cancer is swimming in the ocean: where we've explored less than 1% of species for medicines, missing solutions like Arctic clams naturally tolerating neurotoxins causing human disease. Seanome unlocks nature’s 4 billion year old pharmacy, democratizing access and empowering scientists worldwide to accelerate the discovery of breakthrough therapies for cancer, neurodegeneration, antibiotic resistance, and beyond.
Longevity
The ocean harbors Earth’s longest-lived animals: from clams surviving over 500 years to jellyfish reversing aging to fish perfecting natural cryopreservation with antifreeze proteins. Seanome decodes these time-defying adaptations, beginning with Arctic clams that naturally protect against neurotoxins, to transform marine wisdom into innovations for human healthspan.
Synthetic Biology
The next CRISPR is swimming in the ocean, but we need the right tools to find it among the >99% of unexplored marine genes. Seanome is building open-source computational tools to unlock this molecular library, helping create a future without landfills, where cars are made from seashells and our homes are built from coral-inspired materials filtering our air and water.
Climate
From scalding volcanic vents to freezing Arctic waters, ocean organisms have perfected life in Earth’s most extreme environments across 4 billion years of climate change. Carbon-storing shell proteins, pressure-resistant structural proteins, and UV-shielding pigments are all swimming under our flippers. Seanome decodes these ancient survival mechanisms, transforming marine adaptations into innovations for a climate-resilient future.