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StudiesCreating Studies

Creating Studies

Studies group samples from one or more orders for coordinated analysis and ENA submission. Create a study when you are ready to run pipelines or submit data publicly.

Study Creation Flow

Study Information

Navigate to /studies and click to create a new study. Fill in:

FieldRequiredDescription
TitleYesDescriptive project title (min 10 characters for ENA)
DescriptionNoDetailed study description (min 50 characters for ENA)
Checklist TypeNoMIxS checklist for metadata standardization
AliasNoShort unique identifier for ENA

Select Samples

Choose which samples to include in the study:

  • Browse unassigned samples from your orders
  • Filter by order, platform, or search by name
  • Select individual samples or use bulk selection
  • Each sample can only belong to one study

Sample Metadata

If a MIxS checklist type was selected, fill in the per-sample metadata:

  • Metadata columns appear based on the selected checklist
  • Required fields are marked and validated
  • Units can be specified for numeric fields
  • Data is stored as JSON in each sample’s checklistData field

Review and Create

Confirm the study details, sample list, and metadata. The study is created with readyForSubmission: false by default.

Study Properties

FieldDescription
TitleThe main identifier shown in lists and on ENA
AliasShort unique ID used as the ENA project alias
DescriptionFree-text project description
Checklist TypeMIxS checklist (MAG, Wastewater, Soil, etc.)
Study MetadataAdditional study-level metadata (JSON)
NotesInternal notes with edit tracking

Managing Samples

After creating a study, you can continue to manage its samples:

  • Add samples — assign more unassigned samples from your orders
  • Remove samples — unassign samples (sets their studyId back to null)
  • Edit metadata — update MIxS fields in the sample table
  • View linked files — see which reads are assigned to each sample

A sample can only belong to one study at a time. To move a sample between studies, remove it from the current study first.

Study Detail Page

The study detail page at /studies/[id] includes:

  • Overview — study metadata, creation date, owner, internal notes
  • Samples — interactive table of assigned samples with metadata editing
  • Pipelines — pipeline runs launched from this study and their results