01
Where it fits and where it does not
Use these four checks before committing implementation time.
- Use it when
- Repositories, laboratories, and federated discovery systems that need comparable descriptions of WGS, RNA-seq, methylation, and other sequencing experiments.
- Limits
- The current scope excludes biological sample descriptors, clinical data, downstream processing, and analysis. A completed checklist is not a reproducibility record, and the checklist does not require one canonical serialization.
- Best for
- Omics and Discovery and Laboratory teams working across Plan → Acquire → Harmonize → Exchange → Learn + reuse.
- Maturity
- ScalingUsable now, but adoption or tooling is still developing. Pilot the exact stack first.
02
See it in the workflow
This view shows the input, the change the standard introduces, and the resulting output.
- InputWhat starts
Omics and Discovery and Laboratory source data, metadata, and local mappings
- ExpmetaWhat changes
Use Expmeta as a pinned metadata profile across Plan → Acquire → Harmonize → Exchange → Learn + reuse
- OutputWhat becomes possible
A handoff the next system or team can validate against the same release
03
A concrete example
Map local experiment fields to the core and identifiers checklists, preserve ontology identifiers and protocols, record the checklist version, validate required local constraints, and publish mappings with the data.
Why it matters: Exposes assay, library, instrument, and protocol variables needed to assess comparability and batch effects, while sample biology, processing provenance, QC, and labels require other standards.
04
What it fits with
Complements ISA and MINSEQE study metadata, sample and clinical models, HTS file formats, and Beacon discovery filters; future categories target single-cell, targeted sequencing, and other assay-specific detail.
- Metadata profileSDRF-Proteomics
Both support Omics and Laboratory work and meet around Plan, Acquire, Harmonize, Exchange, Learn + reuse. Compare their roles before treating them as interchangeable.
Explore relationship - Metadata profileREMBI
Both support Laboratory and Discovery work and meet around Plan, Acquire, Harmonize, Exchange, Learn + reuse. Compare their roles before treating them as interchangeable.
Explore relationship - Data model / schemaAIRR · MiAIRR
Both support Omics and Laboratory work and meet around Plan, Acquire, Harmonize, Exchange, Learn + reuse. Compare their roles before treating them as interchangeable.
Explore relationship - Data model / schemaISA
Both support Discovery and Laboratory and Omics work and meet around Plan, Acquire, Harmonize. Compare their roles before treating them as interchangeable.
Explore relationship
05
Implementation starter
Start with one bounded handoff. Pin, test, and review it before scaling.
Define one handoff, its accountable owner, and the decision Expmeta must support.
Pin the exact version and companion artifacts: v1.0.0 · approved 2025-10-29.
Map one representative input to the required metadata profile artifacts.
Test the result against the canonical source and record every exception.
Preserve the source data, mappings, and review evidence before scaling.
06
Test the main limitation
The current scope excludes biological sample descriptors, clinical data, downstream processing, and analysis. A completed checklist is not a reproducibility record, and the checklist does not require one canonical serialization.
Run one representative end-to-end pilot and record exactly where Expmeta loses context, needs an extension, or depends on another standard.
Machine-readable output may still be unfit for analysis or ML.
Test the output for missing context, provenance, terminology alignment, time leakage, and the intended downstream decision. Exposes assay, library, instrument, and protocol variables needed to assess comparability and batch effects, while sample biology, processing provenance, QC, and labels require other standards.
07
Official resources
Specifications, diagrams, examples, and guides from the organizations that maintain them.
GA4GH Expmeta v1.0.0
Official publisher or steward guidance for this metadata profile profile.
- Publisher
- GA4GH Discovery Work Stream