Graduate Bioinformatics: Comparative Methods CBMG 688H (3 credits) or 688G (2 credit CBMG module)

CBMG688H will meet all semester, although not necessarily every class period. CBMG688G (2 credits) will commence March 26.

Bioinformatics: Comparative Methods is a graduate course in comparative methods in bioinformatics, and was previously offered in the fall semester as MICB688N. Graduate students with interests in bioinformatics may also want to consider CBMG688O (Graduate Bioinformatics: Molecular Systematics), which is complementary to Comparative Methods. It would be appropriate to take both CBMG688H and 688O, and students with a strong interest in computational biology are encouraged to do so. If practical, Graduate Bioinformatics: Comparative Methods should be taken prior to Graduate Bioinformatics: Molecular Systematics, but it is acceptable to reverse the order.

Graduate Bioinformatics: Comparative Methods is intended for graduate students interested in the application of computational methods to the comparative analysis of DNA and protein sequences. Students are expected to have a solid background in the biological sciences, but the class is open to students in computer science and related fields who have had some substantial prior exposure to the biological sciences. No prior experience with programming is required, but students should be comfortable working with computers. The primary emphasis will be on understanding the concepts and principles that form the basis for bioinformatic techniques, particularly similarity search and pairwise alignment algorithms (e.g., BLAST, FASTA, Needleman-Wunch, Smith-Waterman), and techniques for homology assessment and functional inference.

Undergraduates should register for BSCI380, "Comparative Bioinformatics" in the Fall Semester. (http://www.life.umd.edu/labs/delwiche/bsci348s/main.html)

Reading Assignments