Bioinformatics

In recent years, molecular biology has undergone a paradigm shift: it is becoming, or rather has already become, a data-rich science. For the first time, it is possible to look at the cell as a whole, to analyze all metabolic pathways or regulatory interactions simultaneously. Bioinformatics is a key source of new knowledge derived from massive, so-called “omics” data. Not only are the technical issues of storing and transmitting huge amounts of data solved, but also methods are developed to make meaningful biological claims based on these data. On the other hand, the analysis of such data makes it possible to predict the function of specific genes and how their work is regulated.

Eventually, the use of bioinformatic methods makes it possible to predict the properties of an organism from its genome: this task can already be solved for bacteria. From a fundamental point of view, bioinformatics connects with molecular evolution and comparative genomics in an attempt to understand the evolutionary mechanisms of proteins, genes, regulatory networks and whole genomes.

Platform Topics

• data analysis in molecular biology,
• bioinformatic algorithms,
• transcriptomics,
• regulation of gene expression,
• RNA secondary structure,
• chromatin 3D structure,
• functional annotation of genes and genomes,
• comparative genomics,
• molecular evolution.