Once we have sequenced genomes in the previous course, we would like to compare them to determine how species have evolved and what makes them different. In the first half of the course, we will compare two short biological sequences, such as genes (i.e., short sequences of DNA) or proteins. We will encounter a powerful algorithmic tool called dynamic programming that will help us determine the number of mutations that have separated the two genes/proteins. In the second half of the course, we will "zoom out" to compare entire genomes, where we see large scale mutations called genome rearrangements, seismic events that have heaved around large blocks of DNA over millions of years of evolution. Looking at the human and mouse genomes, we will ask ourselves: just as earthquakes are much more likely to occur along fault lines, are there locations in our genome that are "fragile" and more susceptible to be broken as part of genome rearrangements? We will see how combinatorial algorithms will help us answer this question. Finally, you will learn how to apply popular bioinformatics software tools to solve problems in sequence alignment, including BLAST.
(Check Out Our Wacky Course Intro Video!)
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Skills You'll Learn
Molecular Biology, Computational Thinking, Algorithms, Biology, Graph Theory, Bioinformatics, Computer Programming Tools, Python Programming
Reviews
4.7 (136 ratings)
- 5 stars75.73%
- 4 stars18.38%
- 3 stars3.67%
- 2 stars2.20%
AS
Aug 2, 2023
Pretty challenging course learned a lot throughout the course. Thanks 糖心vlog官网观看 for organizing the course
HN
Jun 22, 2017
I have taken courses I, II and III. They were consistently excellent. I plan to go for the next one.
From the lesson
Week 1: Introduction to Sequence Alignment
Taught By
Pavel Pevzner
Professor
Phillip Compeau
Visiting Researcher
Nikolay Vyahhi
Visiting Scholar