Comparative Toxicogenomic Database Redesign
Making the platform simpler and intuitive for 100,000+ researchers
UX Designer
3 months
Healthcare Research
Context
The Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD) is a federally-funded platform used by scientists and researchers to explore the connections between chemicals, genes, and diseases. CTD offers a powerful search function and a suite of analysis tools for interpreting complex toxicogenomic data.
The Problem
Despite its capabilities, CTD’s homepage didn’t effectively guide users. The homepage was text-heavy and cluttered. The most-used Search feature was hard to discover and slow to use. Analysis tools were underutilized, often overlooked or misunderstood. Users were exporting data to third-party websites of using CTD’s built-in tools.
Discovery & Research
When I first joined the project, the request was simple “Make the homepage look nice.” But soon, it became clear that aesthetics wasn't the only issue. Stakeholders revealed the real concern: “People don’t use our tools because the website feels too complex just from looking at the homepage.” Instead of jumping straight into design, I set out to validate this claim. Turns out users didn't even know these tools existed.
User Research
I launched a qualitative survey via Qualtrics with a few demographic questions and 10 open-ended ones. Our goal to uncover what users actually struggled with. From responses, we identified four key issues:
Search feature felt overly complex.
Website looked crowded and text-heavy.
Analysis tools were hard to discover.
Users weren’t aware of all types of data available.
1. Search feature felt overly complex
Users often had to re-type long chemical names multiple times and searches frequently returned over a thousand results, which felt overwhelming. On top of that, the results contained many different data types, making it difficult to filter or distinguish between them.
What I did:
Added search recommendations with recent searches at the top.
Used icons and clearer labels to separate data categories.
Created a cleaner, balanced layout to make scanning easier.
2. Website felt crowded and text-heavy
The website looked more complicated than it really was - lots of text, limited breathing room, and no visual hierarchy.
What I did:
Created a new visual direction with cleaner layouts and more spacing
Simplified scientific data through icons, graphics, and charts
3. Analysis tools were hard to discover
Stakeholders initially assumed the users were not using the analysis tools since they were too complex. However, research showed that most users didn’t even know they existed. They downloaded data and used third-party sites for analysis because the tools were simply hidden under a dropdown menu.
What I did:
Added an Analysis Tools overview directly on the homepage.
Gave users a visible entry point with hints to scroll for more details.
4. Users weren’t aware of all types of data available
Majority of the users believed only Chemicals, Genes, and Diseases were available because of the word clouds in the original homepage.
What I did:
Introduced an eye-catching rotating visual plus data chips.
Each chip linked to a category page that explained the data in depth.
Similar Databases
In parallel, I also reviewed other large-scale database websites that connect different types of data. The goal was to observe how similar platforms structure complex information and to identify patterns and best practices that could guide our platform’s redesign.
Final Solution
New homepage anchored by a search-first experience.
Chips below the search bar show types of data available.
A tools slider makes analysis features more discoverable.
Redesigned icons and illustrations add clarity and visual rhythm.
Handoff
Once the design solutions were finalized, I prepared a handoff kit for the development team. This included annotated mockups, detailed component behaviors and reusable design components to maintain consistency across pages. I also provided clear specifications on spacing, typography, and states to reduce ambiguity.
Impact & Takeaways
I improved discoverability, simplified complex features and made users aware of the platform’s full capabilities. It laid the groundwork for users to stay within the platform for analysis, making their research process faster.
The design is currently in development, and while impact metrics are not yet available, I plan to validate its effectiveness with a follow-up user survey and usability testing. This will help us measure improvements in search and usage of analysis tools.
Currently I am exploring AI tools (Cursor + Claude) to see how far I go with converting my Figma screens into production level code.
Other Pages
The rest of the website was redesigned with the new visual design direction with better spacing and layout for consistency.
Other work
