Unconfigured Ad

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • jaavedm
    Junior Member
    • Jun 2011
    • 8

    [bwa_read_seq] the maximum barcode length is 15

    Hi

    I am trying to align some Sanger sequencing reads to the D. simulans assembly with BWA and I'm getting the error "the maximum barcode length is 15" when converting from BWA output format to SAM. Actually, I'm trying to align the same reads from when this genome was first assembled back unto the droSim1 reference assembly (downloadable from UCSC Genome Browser).

    Here are the commands I've used to align the reads and convert to SAM format:

    bwa bwasw -t 16 -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.fq
    bwa samse -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.sai c1674_clean.fq


    It is the last command that outputs
    [bwa_read_seq] the maximum barcode length is 15
    I happens almost immediately as well once the command is executed. I don't think it is an out-of-memory issue like other posts seem to suggest.


    I'm using BWA version 0.5.9-r16 on RHEL5.5 machine with 16 processors and 48GB of RAM. As far as I can tell no barcoding was done with Sanger sequencing.

    The input files are large (659MB), but I can put it up somewhere for download temporarily.

    Any help is greatly appreciated.
    Thanks,
    David
  • GenoMax
    Senior Member
    • Feb 2008
    • 7142

    #2
    Originally posted by jaavedm View Post
    Hi

    I am trying to align some Sanger sequencing reads to the D. simulans assembly with BWA and I'm getting the error "the maximum barcode length is 15" when converting from BWA output format to SAM. Actually, I'm trying to align the same reads from when this genome was first assembled back unto the droSim1 reference assembly (downloadable from UCSC Genome Browser).

    Here are the commands I've used to align the reads and convert to SAM format:

    bwa bwasw -t 16 -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.fq
    bwa samse -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.sai c1674_clean.fq


    It is the last command that outputs
    [bwa_read_seq] the maximum barcode length is 15
    I happens almost immediately as well once the command is executed. I don't think it is an out-of-memory issue like other posts seem to suggest.


    I'm using BWA version 0.5.9-r16 on RHEL5.5 machine with 16 processors and 48GB of RAM. As far as I can tell no barcoding was done with Sanger sequencing.

    The input files are large (659MB), but I can put it up somewhere for download temporarily.

    Any help is greatly appreciated.
    Thanks,
    David

    David,

    Perhaps I am overlooking something but shouldn't the sequence of commands be this (<db.fasta> is your "reference"):

    1. bwa index -a bwasw <db.fasta> (*build index*)
    2. bwa aln -t 16 <db.fasta> c1674_clean.fq > c_1674_clean.sai (*do alignment*)
    3. bwa samse <db.fasta> c1674_clean.sai c1674_clean.fq > c_1674_clean.sam (convert to sam)

    Comment

    • jaavedm
      Junior Member
      • Jun 2011
      • 8

      #3
      GenoMax,

      Thanks for your response. I omitted the indexing step. Here are the three bwa commands I executed for completeness:

      Code:
      bwa index -p droSim1bwaidx -a bwtsw droSim1.fa
      bwa bwasw -t 16 -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.fq
      bwa samse -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.sai c1674_clean.fq
      Also of note, I tried redirecting the output from "bwa bwasw" and "bwa samse" like you recommended but that also fails. Earlier posts on Seqanswers.com suggested that this type of error that I'm seeing might be attributed to the ">" redirection symbol, hence my use of the explicit "-f" option in my commands.

      Best,
      David

      Comment

      • GenoMax
        Senior Member
        • Feb 2008
        • 7142

        #4
        Originally posted by jaavedm View Post
        GenoMax,

        Thanks for your response. I omitted the indexing step. Here are the three bwa commands I executed for completeness:

        Code:
        bwa index -p droSim1bwaidx -a bwtsw droSim1.fa
        bwa bwasw -t 16 -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.fq
        bwa samse -f c1674_clean.sam droSim1bwaidx c1674_clean.sai c1674_clean.fq
        Also of note, I tried redirecting the output from "bwa bwasw" and "bwa samse" like you recommended but that also fails. Earlier posts on Seqanswers.com suggested that this type of error that I'm seeing might be attributed to the ">" redirection symbol, hence my use of the explicit "-f" option in my commands.

        Best,
        David
        Have you tried putting the command in a file and then execute that file instead of the full command?

        I do that with LSF since the ">" poses a problem. I guess you are not using a queue manager since this appears to be a standalone server.

        If you want to PM me with download info for a small subset of your sequences, I can try to replicate this locally.

        Comment

        • jaavedm
          Junior Member
          • Jun 2011
          • 8

          #5
          The files are temporarily available at http://compgen.bscb.cornell.edu/~jm8.../c1674.tar.bz2
          The problem reproduces fairly quickly with "bwa samse".

          This archive should include the:
          1. c1674_clean.fq file
          2. c1674_clean.sai file
          3. BWA droSim1bwaidx* files
          4. BWA executable (for x86_64 Linux machines)
          5. droSim1.fa (if index needs to be rebuilt)


          Thanks,
          David
          Last edited by jaavedm; 07-01-2011, 09:16 AM.

          Comment

          • GenoMax
            Senior Member
            • Feb 2008
            • 7142

            #6
            Originally posted by jaavedm View Post
            The files are temporarily available at http://compgen.bscb.cornell.edu/~jm889/perm/c1674.tar.bz2
            The problem reproduces fairly quickly with "bwa samse".

            This archive should include the:
            1. c1674_clean.fq file
            2. c1674_clean.sai file
            3. BWA droSim1bwaidx* files
            4. BWA executable (for x86_64 Linux machines)
            5. droSim1.fa (if index needs to be rebuilt)


            Thanks,
            David
            This link requires credentials to complete the download. Can you send those via a PM?

            Comment

            • jaavedm
              Junior Member
              • Jun 2011
              • 8

              #7
              Sorry. Can you try the following address instead:

              Comment

              • GenoMax
                Senior Member
                • Feb 2008
                • 7142

                #8
                Originally posted by jaavedm View Post
                Sorry. Can you try the following address instead:

                http://compgen.bscb.cornell.edu/~jm8.../c1674.tar.bz2
                That worked. Thanks.

                Comment

                • GenoMax
                  Senior Member
                  • Feb 2008
                  • 7142

                  #9
                  Documenting the solution for someone doing a search in future:

                  BWA implements two separate alignment algorithms. One is for short reads, requiring "aln" and "samse/sampe" combination.

                  Other ("bwasw") is for long reads. Invoking bwa with "bwasw" makes the .sam file in one step and only works for single-end reads.

                  Comment

                  • saad0105050
                    Junior Member
                    • Apr 2012
                    • 5

                    #10
                    bwa bwasw output format is sam!

                    Hi GenoMax, thank you very much. I was stuck at this step (bwa bwasw) since this behavior (sam output) is not documented in bwa website.

                    Comment

                    • saulbishop
                      Junior Member
                      • Mar 2013
                      • 2

                      #11
                      This is a post on the minimum & maximum size a barcode can be:

                      http://beforeitsnews.com/business/2013/02/how-big-or-small-can-my-barcode-label-be-2487584/barcode-image

                      Comment

                      Latest Articles

                      Collapse

                      • SEQadmin2
                        Nine Things a Sample Prep Scientist Thinks About Before Sequencing
                        by SEQadmin2


                        I’m not a sequencing expert. I’m a purification scientist who uses NGS to evaluate workflows my group develops. With this perspective, we think about the sample first and the NGS workflow second. The sequencer is an exceptionally honest reporter, but it can only report on what you give it, so whether you get clean, interpretable data from an NGS workflow is largely determined before you begin.


                        Here are nine questions we think about, in roughly the order they matter, before...
                        Yesterday, 07:11 AM
                      • SEQadmin2
                        From Collection to Sequencing: Why Sample Preparation and Preservation Define Sequencing Data
                        by SEQadmin2


                        Data variability is still an issue in sequencing technologies despite the advances in reproducibility and accuracy of these platforms. But the problem does not originate in the sequencing itself, but in the previous steps, before the sample reaches the sequencer.


                        The first step is collection, followed by preservation and sample preparation for analysis. Most scientists overlook those steps, but not being careful might just be skewing the experiment’s results.
                        ...
                        06-02-2026, 10:05 AM
                      • SEQadmin2
                        Single-Cell Sequencing at an Inflection Point: Early Impacts of New Platforms and Emerging Trends
                        by SEQadmin2


                        With the launch of new single-cell sequencing platforms in 2026, the field stands at an exciting inflection point. This article surveys the most impactful advances in the field and discusses how they’re reshaping research in cancer, immunology, and beyond.


                        Introduction

                        Single-cell sequencing technologies have undergone remarkable advances over the past decade, transitioning from low-throughput experimental approaches to highly scalable platforms capable of...
                        05-22-2026, 06:42 AM

                      ad_right_rmr

                      Collapse

                      News

                      Collapse

                      Topics Statistics Last Post
                      Started by SEQadmin2, 06-17-2026, 06:09 AM
                      0 responses
                      20 views
                      0 reactions
                      Last Post SEQadmin2  
                      Started by SEQadmin2, 06-09-2026, 11:58 AM
                      0 responses
                      38 views
                      0 reactions
                      Last Post SEQadmin2  
                      Started by SEQadmin2, 06-05-2026, 10:09 AM
                      0 responses
                      44 views
                      0 reactions
                      Last Post SEQadmin2  
                      Started by SEQadmin2, 06-04-2026, 08:59 AM
                      0 responses
                      49 views
                      0 reactions
                      Last Post SEQadmin2  
                      Working...