ℹ️ About enviPath at Manchester University

1 Software Information

Version: 1.0.0

Date: November 2025

Developers: Jeff Osborne and Cursor AI

Location: Manchester University, North Manchester, Indiana, USA

2 System & Design

enviPath Integration: Real-time synchronization with the EAWAG-BBD package from envipath.org, providing access to 1,399 compounds, 1,480 reactions (1,301 with enzyme names and EC numbers), and 219 biodegradation pathways.

Pathway Visualization: Interactive graph visualization using Cytoscape.js with hierarchical layout algorithms (Dagre) to display complex biodegradation pathways.

Chemical Structure Processing: RDKit-based molecular structure rendering with automatic SVG generation for compound visualization, plus substructure searching capabilities.

User Workspace: Multi-user system with isolated workspaces where users can create, edit, and manage their own compounds, reactions, and pathways.

Pathway Builder: Interactive drag-and-drop interface for building custom biodegradation pathways with real-time visualization.

Data Caching: Local SQLite database cache for fast access to enviPath data with incremental update capabilities.

3 Key Features

Browse enviPath Database: Access the complete EAWAG-BBD package with searchable compounds, reactions, and pathways.

Interactive Pathway Visualization: Explore biodegradation pathways with clickable compounds and reactions, showing detailed information in modals.

Pathway Builder: Create custom pathways by adding compounds and connecting them with reactions using an intuitive graph interface.

Chemical Structure Editor: Draw chemical structures using Ketcher editor, with automatic SMILES generation and SVG rendering.

Structure-Based Search: Search for compounds and pathways by drawing chemical structures. The system uses RDKit to find all compounds containing your drawn structure as a substructure.

Enzyme Information: Reactions include enzyme names and EC numbers extracted from the enviPath database, with links to BRENDA, KEGG, and ExPASy databases.

External Database Links: Direct links to PubChem for compounds, and BRENDA, KEGG, and ExPASy for enzyme information, providing seamless access to additional resources.

User Workspace: Registered users can create, edit, and manage their own compounds, reactions, and pathways.

Rich Text Formatting: Support for HTML formatting in pathway descriptions including links, italics, superscript, subscript, and Greek letters.

Admin Interface: Comprehensive admin dashboard for cache management and user workspace access.

Multi-User Support: Session-based authentication with isolated user workspaces.

Responsive Design: Modern, mobile-friendly interface with consistent styling.

4 Technical Stack

Backend: Python with FastAPI framework for high-performance async API endpoints.

Database: SQLite with SQLAlchemy ORM for data persistence and query optimization.

Chemistry Library: RDKit for molecular structure processing, SMILES parsing, and SVG generation.

Frontend: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript (ES6+) with Jinja2 templating.

Visualization: Cytoscape.js for interactive graph visualization with Dagre layout algorithm.

Structure Editor: Ketcher standalone editor embedded via iframe with postMessage API communication for drawing and searching chemical structures.

Substructure Search: RDKit-based substructure matching for finding compounds and pathways containing specific chemical moieties.

HTTP Client: httpx for async communication with enviPath REST API.

Authentication: JWT tokens for admin access, session-based authentication for regular users.

Server: Gunicorn with Uvicorn workers, served behind Apache reverse proxy.

5 Data Source

enviPath API: envipath.org - Environmental biotransformation pathway database

EAWAG-BBD Package: Package ID: 32de3cf4-e3e6-4168-956e-32fa5ddb0ce1

API Documentation: enviPath REST API Documentation

External Database Links: The system provides direct links to multiple external databases:

  • BRENDA: BRENDA - Comprehensive enzyme information database (EC numbers)
  • KEGG: KEGG - Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (for complete EC numbers)
  • ExPASy: ExPASy - Enzyme nomenclature database (EC numbers)
  • PubChem: PubChem - Chemical compound database (for compounds with SMILES/InChI)

6 Contact & Support

For questions, bug reports, or feature requests, please contact Jeff Osborne.

Email: jposborne@manchester.edu

Homepage: https://users.manchester.edu/Facstaff/JPOsborne/index.htm