What is the difference between gene sets in MSigDB and GO/BioCarta/GenMAPP?
MSigDB contains gene sets formatted for use with GSEA. MSigDB places emphasis on a genomic, unbiased approach to the definition of gene sets; therefore, an important component of MSigDB is the collection of gene sets from published expression profiles. Unlike gene sets curated from prior knowledge (such as, GO, BioCarta, and so on), experimental sets provide an unbiased readout of a biological state; experimental sets from microarray experiments reflect purely transcriptional events.
