SBMLNetwork: A framework for standards-based visualization of biochemical models

SBMLNetwork is an open-source software library that makes the SBML Layout and Render packages practical for standards-based visualization of biochemical models. Current tools often manage model visualization data in custom-designed, tool-specific formats and store it separately from the model itself, hindering interoperability, reproducibility, and the seamless integration of visualization with model data. SBMLNetwork addresses these limitations by building directly on the SBML Layout and Render specifications, automating the generation of standards-compliant visualization data, offering a modular implementation with broad integration support, and providing a robust API tailored to the needs of systems biology researchers. We illustrate the capabilities of SBMLNetwork across key visualization tasks, including SBGN-compliant visualization, application of predefined style templates, layout arrangement to reflect pathway logic, and integration of model data into network diagrams. These examples demonstrate how SBMLNetwork enables high-level visualization features and seamlessly translate user intent into reproducible outputs that support both structural representation and dynamic data visualization within the SBML model. SBMLNetwork is freely available at https://github.com/sys-bio/SBMLNetwork under the MIT license.

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Publication Details

Journal
PLoS Computational Biology
Published
2025-09-22
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013128
Primary Topic
Microbial Metabolic Engineering and Bioproduction
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

SBMLNetwork: A framework for standards-based visualization of biochemical models

Herbert M. Sauro, Lucian P. Smith, Joseph L. Hellerstein, Adel Heydarabadipour
PLoS Computational Biology
Microbial Metabolic Engineering and Bioproduction
article

SBMLNetwork: A framework for standards-based visualization of biochemical models

Herbert M. Sauro, Lucian P. Smith, Joseph L. Hellerstein, Adel Heydarabadipour
article en

Abstract

SBMLNetwork is an open-source software library that makes the SBML Layout and Render packages practical for standards-based visualization of biochemical models. Current tools often manage model visualization data in custom-designed, tool-specific formats and store it separately from the model itself, hindering interoperability, reproducibility, and the seamless integration of visualization with model data. SBMLNetwork addresses these limitations by building directly on the SBML Layout and Render specifications, automating the generation of standards-compliant visualization data, offering a modular implementation with broad integration support, and providing a robust API tailored to the needs of systems biology researchers. We illustrate the capabilities of SBMLNetwork across key visualization tasks, including SBGN-compliant visualization, application of predefined style templates, layout arrangement to reflect pathway logic, and integration of model data into network diagrams. These examples demonstrate how SBMLNetwork enables high-level visualization features and seamlessly translate user intent into reproducible outputs that support both structural representation and dynamic data visualization within the SBML model. SBMLNetwork is freely available at https://github.com/sys-bio/SBMLNetwork under the MIT license.

PLoS Computational BiologyVol. 21(9)
University of Washington (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 77%
Microbial Metabolic Engineering and Bioproduction
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