I can't save you, but I can help you: reverse-complementing a DNA in OpenOffice

People in my lab are using "Microsoft Word" to edit and annotate their sequences. Just like Neil, I can't save them but I can help them: here is an OpenOffice / LibreOffice macro reverse-complementing the current selected text.

	' Author:
	' Pierre Lindenbaum PhD
	' Date:
	' 2011-07-15
	' Motivation:
	' reverse complement a DNA in OpenOffice/LibreOffice
	' WWW:
	' http://plindenbaum@yahoo.fr
	'
	Sub ReverseComplementSelection
	Dim oDoc
	Dim oVC
	oDoc = ThisComponent
	oVC = oDoc.CurrentController.getViewCursor
	If Len(oVC.String) > 0 Then
	Dim result as String
	result= reverseString(complementDNA(oVC.String))
	oVC.setString( result )
	EndIf
	End Sub
	Function reverseString( s As String) As String
	dim result As String
	dim x As Integer
	result=""
	If Not IsMissing (s) Then
	For x = Len(s) To 1 Step -1
	result = result & Mid(s, x, 1)
	next x
	End If
	reverseString = result
	End Function
	Function complementDNA( s As String) As String
	dim result As String
	dim acidNucleic As String
	dim x As Integer
	result=""
	If Not IsMissing (s) Then
	For x = 1 To Len(s)
	acidNucleic= Mid(s, x, 1)
	Select Case acidNucleic
	Case "A": acidNucleic = "T"
	Case "a": acidNucleic = "t"
	Case "T": acidNucleic = "A"
	Case "t": acidNucleic = "a"
	Case "G": acidNucleic = "C"
	Case "g": acidNucleic = "c"
	Case "C": acidNucleic = "G"
	Case "c": acidNucleic = "g"
	Case "N": acidNucleic = "N"
	Case "n": acidNucleic = "n"
	Case Else
	'.
	End Select
	result = result & acidNucleic
	next x
	End If
	complementDNA = result
	End Function

view raw ReverseComplementMacro.txt hosted with ❤ by GitHub

• open libreoffice/openoffice
• Open menu "Tools / Macros / Organize macros / Basic...
• Select "My Macros/Standard" and click on "New"
• Copy+paste my macro here
• Click on the top button "compile"
• Close the dialog
• Menu "Tools/Customize" , "Keyboard" tab, "Toolbar content" . Button "Add... " / Category "Libre Office Macros" . Select "My Macro/Standard/Modulexxx"/ReverseComplementSelection". Click on "Modify" to assign an icon to this new button
• There is now a new button in the toolbar. Clicking on that button reverse-complements the selected text.

That's it,

Pierre

PS: Hum ? what did you say, they use Microsoft Word ? Not OpenOffice ? pfff....