Bioinformatics is a combination of life science and informatics. It always involves programming and data handling, knowledge of Linux beside Windows, numbers of applications and software packages to handle and visualize data, and, maybe most important, a lot of communication between biologists and scientific programmers.
In this field you can work with DNA sequences in comparative genomics and Phylogenetics, RNA expression in transcriptomics research, amino acid sequences in 3D proteomics and structural or functional genomics, or even in systems biology or epi-genomics.
In this minor you will learn how to process and visualize biological data. You can divide the minor into roughly three parts:
• Informatics (programming, SQL data management, Linux, cloud computing)
• Biological problem solving (computational biology, Data & Database analysis, Next Generation Sequencing, and Transcriptomics)
• Protein 3D modelling and visualization
In the setup of the courses and training, diverse aspects of bioinformatics are highlighted. Within the projects, it is possible to gain in-depth knowledge of various aspects of bioinformatics. For example, research on the DNA/RNA (Next generation sequencing data Phylogenetics, transcriptomics) level, on the protein level (3D protein modelling) or on visualization level by using the R environment. These three aspects will all be covered in the courses and trainings of this minor. Linux based exercises will be performed using the LISA computer cluster provided by SURFsara (Stichting Academisch Rekencentrum Amsterdam). In this way you will be equipped with the skills of cloud computing.
In order to stay up to date, the presented projects have been developed in collaboration with experts from the working field. These researchers will also be involved in the projects as your external supervisors.
Students majoring in Biomedical Research, Bio-molecular Research and the Biotechnology are welcome to this minor. Other students will be admitted accordingly upon intake results. Students from abroad are welcome according to national/international agreements.
This minor will be given exclusively in English.