Each signature is displayed according to the 96 substitution classification defined by the substitution class and sequence context immediately 3′ and 5′ to the mutated base. The probability bars for the six types of substitutions are displayed in different colours.

In principle, all classes of mutation (such as substitutions, indels, rearrangements) and any accessory mutation characteristic, for example, the sequence context of the mutation or the transcriptional strand on which it occurs, can be incorporated into the set of features by which a mutational signature is defined. In the first instance, we extracted mutational signatures using base substitutions and additionally included information on the sequence context of each mutation. Because there are six classes of base substitution—C>A, C>G, C>T, T>A, T>C, T>G (all substitutions are referred to by the pyrimidine of the mutated Watson–Crick base pair)—and as we incorporated information on the bases immediately 5′ and 3′ to each mutated base, there are 96 possible mutations in this classification. This 96 substitution classification is particularly useful for distinguishing mutational signatures that cause the same substitutions but in different sequence contexts.