> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.dataerai.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Import from the European Nucleotide Archive

> Search the European Nucleotide Archive (ENA) for sequencing studies and import them into a project as metadata-first assets — without copying the bytes into Dataerai. Each sequence file streams straight from ENA over HTTPS.

Dataerai can pull sequencing data from the [European Nucleotide Archive](https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena) (ENA), EMBL-EBI's public repository of nucleotide-sequencing data, into one of your projects as **metadata-first assets**. The study's metadata — title, description, submitting centre, publication date — is copied into Dataerai so it's searchable and shareable alongside your own data. The **files are not copied**: clicking **Download** on an imported asset streams that sequence file (FASTQ, assembly, etc.) directly from ENA's host over HTTPS.

<Note>
  Imported assets are [metadata-first](/data/metadata-first-assets): they describe and link to data that lives on ENA. Nothing is stored in your Dataerai allocation, so importing doesn't consume your quota.
</Note>

One ENA **study** (an accession such as `PRJEB1234`, `ERP001234`, or `SRP001234`) imports as a **collection of assets — one asset per sequence file** in the study, grouped under a collection named for the study. Each asset's file (e.g. `ERR214763_1.fastq.gz`) downloads straight from ENA. A study with no publicly downloadable files (for example, an access-restricted study) instead imports as a single asset that links out to the study's [ENA browser record](https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/home).

## Search the European Nucleotide Archive

Open the **Import from European Nucleotide Archive** page and enter a search term, then **Search**.

* The search is free text and matches the study **title** — try `cancer`, `E. coli`, or `microbiome`.
* Results show **Title**, **Type**, and **Files**, with the study accession and publication date under each title.
* Use **Per page** to trade clicks for a longer page. The page count reflects the full result set, so you can page to the last page directly.

## Select and import

<Steps>
  <Step title="Select studies">
    Tick the studies you want — click a row, or press Space or Enter on it, to toggle its checkbox. The header checkbox selects or clears everything on the current page; your selection is kept as you page through results.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose the destination project">
    Paste the UUID of the project that should own the new assets into the **Import into project** field.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Import">
    Click **Import**. Large selections are sent in batches automatically, and a single **Import result** panel summarizes how many studies were imported (and how many assets were created), plus any that failed and why.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  A single study can contain many sequence files, so importing one study can create many assets. Very large studies import a capped subset of their files; the rest remain available directly on ENA.
</Note>

<Warning>
  Because imported assets point at ENA rather than your own storage, their files are only available while the ENA objects are. If you need a durable copy under your control, download the file and [upload it](/data/upload) as a regular asset instead.
</Warning>

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Metadata-first assets" icon="file-plus" href="/data/metadata-first-assets">
    How assets that describe data elsewhere work in Dataerai.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Import from Zenodo" icon="download" href="/data/import-zenodo">
    Pull public records from Zenodo the same metadata-first way.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Organize into collections" icon="folder-tree" href="/organize/collections">
    Group imported studies alongside your own data.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Search & discover" icon="search" href="/discover/search">
    Find imported studies by title, type, and metadata.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>