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. 2003 Winter;2(4):233-47.
doi: 10.1187/cbe.03-06-0026.

Evolving strategies for the incorporation of bioinformatics within the undergraduate cell biology curriculum

Jerry E Honts  1
Affiliations

Evolving strategies for the incorporation of bioinformatics within the undergraduate cell biology curriculum

Jerry E Honts. Cell Biol Educ. 2003 Winter.

Abstract

Recent advances in genomics and structural biology have resulted in an unprecedented increase in biological data available from Internet-accessible databases. In order to help students effectively use this vast repository of information, undergraduate biology students at Drake University were introduced to bioinformatics software and databases in three courses, beginning with an introductory course in cell biology. The exercises and projects that were used to help students develop literacy in bioinformatics are described. In a recently offered course in bioinformatics, students developed their own simple sequence analysis tool using the Perl programming language. These experiences are described from the point of view of the instructor as well as the students. A preliminary assessment has been made of the degree to which students had developed a working knowledge of bioinformatics concepts and methods. Finally, some conclusions have been drawn from these courses that may be helpful to instructors wishing to introduce bioinformatics within the undergraduate biology curriculum.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A flowchart showing the overall flow of information in the amino acid composition calculator Perl program.
Figure 2
Figure 2
An excerpt of code from the Perl program for the amino acid composition calculator.
Figure 3
Figure 3
A screenshot of the Web page containing the form used to submit protein sequences for analysis by the Web server-based Perl script for calculating amino acid compositions. The amino acid sequence for the ryanodine receptor (RYR1) protein has been pasted in the text field. The program depends on the sequence being in FASTA format.
Figure 4
Figure 4
A screenshot of the Web page containing the results of the amino acid composition analysis carried out by the Web server-based Perl script. In this version, the analysis is returned in the form of a bar graph generated through the use of a specific Perl module (HTML::Template).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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MeSH terms

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