GORP: An object-oriented design for genomic objects, relationships and processes

The Eccles Institute for Human Genetics (EIHG) has developed a genomic database based on a novel level of abstraction. Objects, relationships, and processes are explicitly represented in an object model. This model has been implemented in a traditional relational database management system. Translating this database model into an object-oriented programming language has proven to be a challenging exercise. This paper describes a C++ object-oriented design which faithfully implements a persistent object model of the original abstractions. In addition, a new level of meta-information is provided which enhances an application's ability to adapt to changes in the database schema. This is a description of work in progress and includes a survey of relationships and processes in the current EIHG databases.