Content
Explore the Dynamic (3D + Time) Architecture of Life
Discover how the three-dimensional structures of proteins, macromolecular assemblies, and viruses change through time to drive biological function. Through interactive visualization tools, you will explore molecular structures in ways that make complex biological systems intuitive and tangible.
BIOS 337: Basic Applications of Bioinformatics (4 credits)
Course Introduction
Bioinformatics merges mathematics, statistics, and computation to better understand biological systems. Today, high-throughput technologies—like whole-genome sequencing and various "-omics" platforms—generate vast amounts of biological data. Bioinformatics helps organize, analyze, and extract meaningful insights from these data, helping researchers design smarter, more efficient experiments and generate biologically meaningful predictions even before conducting laboratory experiments.
What You Will Learn
Designed as a beginner-level introduction for undergraduates, this course focuses on bioinformatics tools commonly used in molecular biology laboratories. You will learn how to navigate public biological databases, perform sequence alignments, predict protein functions and three-dimensional structures, and analyze evolutionary relationships—all without requiring any prior programming skills.
BIOS 998-005: Structural Informatics and Biology, Spring (3 credits)
Course Overview
This course explores the molecular mechanisms of biological systems at atomic resolution, revealing how three-dimensional molecular structures give rise to biological functions. Featuring lectures, expert guest speakers, and hands-on modeling exercises, the course also includes networking sessions to connect directly with visiting scientists.
What You Will Achieve
By the end of this course, you will be able to extract and interpret critical structural data from scientific literature with confidence, transforming two-dimensional figures into intuitive three-dimensional mental models. You will gain the ability to select appropriate computational tools and algorithms available through online resources to predict molecular interactions and analyze ligand-binding sites, and engage in rigorous, high-level scientific discussions.