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2014-2015 Catalog

This is an archived copy of the 2014-2015 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.iastate.edu.

Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Undergraduate

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Undergraduate study

Undergraduate study in BCBio is jointly administered by the Department of Computer Science, the Department of Genetics, Development, and Cell Biology, and the Department of Mathematics. The undergraduate B.S. degree is offered through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Bioinformatics and Computational Biology is an interdisciplinary science at the interfaces of the biological, informational and computational sciences. The science focuses on a variety of topics. These include gene identification, expression, and evolution; RNA, protein, and genome structure; and molecular and cellular systems and networks. The large group of participating faculty provides students with a multidimensional perspective on bioinformatics and computational biology and presents them with broad range of possibilities to get involved in research.

This major will prepare students for careers at the interfaces of biological, informational and computational sciences. BCBio graduates with a B.S. seeking direct employment will find ready markets for their talents in agricultural and medical biotechnology industries, as well as in academia, national laboratories, and clinics. Although some students find employment directly after their baccalaureate training, many students will continue their education in one of the many excellent graduate programs in bioinformatics and computational biology that now exist.

Participation in this field requires that students achieve a high level of competence not only in biology, but also in mathematics, computer science, and statistics. As a result, the program includes required courses from many different disciplines. Graduates demonstrate an above-average ability to synthesize methods from these different disciplines to solve problems.

In addition to basic degree requirements listed in the Curriculum in Liberal Arts and Sciences, BCBio majors must satisfy the following requirements:

A. Complementary Courses for the BCBio Major (34 cr)

One of the following12
CHEM 177
  & 177L
  & CHEM 178
General Chemistry I
   and Laboratory in General Chemistry I
   and General Chemistry II
CHEM 201
  & 201L
  & CHEM 331
Advanced General Chemistry
   and Laboratory in Advanced General Chemistry
   and Organic Chemistry I
PHYS 221Introduction to Classical Physics I5
STAT 330Probability and Statistics for Computer Science3
or STAT 341 Introduction to the Theory of Probability and Statistics I
STAT 430Empirical Methods for the Computational Sciences3
BIOL 211Principles of Biology I3
BIOL 211LPrinciples of Biology Laboratory I1
BIOL 212Principles of Biology II3
BIOL 212LPrinciples of Biology Laboratory II1
BIOL 314Principles of Molecular Cell Biology3
Total Credits34

 B. Core Courses Within the BCBio Major (48 cr)

GEN 313Principles of Genetics3
GEN 313LGenetics Laboratory1
GEN 409Molecular Genetics3
COM S 227Introduction to Object-oriented Programming4
COM S 228Introduction to Data Structures3
COM S 363Introduction to Database Management Systems3
COM S 330Discrete Computational Structures3
or CPR E 310 Theoretical Foundations of Computer Engineering
MATH 165Calculus I4
MATH 166Calculus II4
MATH 265Calculus III4
MATH 207Matrices and Linear Algebra3
BCBIO 110BCBIO Orientation0.5
BCBIO 211Introduction to Bioinformatics and Computational Biology3
BCBIO 401Fundamentals of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology I3
BCBIO 402Fundamentals of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology II3
BCBIO 490Independent Study1-5
or BCBIO 491 Team Research Projects.
Total Credits45.5-49.5

C. Support Electives

3-9 credits to be chosen from the following list:

BCB 593Workshop in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology1
BCB 596Genomic Data Processing3
PHYS 222Introduction to Classical Physics II5
BBMB 404Biochemistry I3
BBMB 405Biochemistry II3
BIOL 315Biological Evolution3
BIOL 423Developmental Biology3
BIOL 462Evolutionary Genetics3
BIOL 465Morphometric Analysis4
BIOL 472Community Ecology3
GEN 340Human Genetics3
GEN 410Analytical Genetics3
STAT 342Introduction to the Theory of Probability and Statistics II3
STAT 402Statistical Design and the Analysis of Experiments3
STAT 416Statistical Design and Analysis of Gene Expression Experiments3
STAT 432Applied Probability Models3
STAT 480Statistical Computing Applications3
MATH 266Elementary Differential Equations3-4
or MATH 267 Elementary Differential Equations and Laplace Transforms
MATH 304Combinatorics3
MATH 314Graphs Theory3
MATH 385Introduction to Partial Differential Equations3
MATH 481Numerical Methods for Differential Equations3

Com S and Cpr E courses at the 300 level and above.

D. The communications and English proficiency requirements of the LAS college are met by:

ENGL 150Critical Thinking and Communication3
ENGL 250Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition3
or ENGL 250H Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition: Honors
And one of the following:
Report and Proposal Writing
Biological Communication
Technical Communication

The lowest grade acceptable in ENGL 150 Critical Thinking and Communication, ENGL 250 Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition or ENGL 250H Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition: Honors is C-.

Courses

Courses primarily for undergraduates:

BCBIO 110. BCBIO Orientation.

(1-0) Cr. 0.5. F.
First 8 weeks. Orientation to the area of bioinformatics and computational biology. For students considering a major in BCBIO. Specializations and career opportunities. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 211. Introduction to Bioinformatics and Computational Biology.

(3-0) Cr. 3. S.
Perl programming, molecular biology, biological databases, sequence alignment, homology search, identification of sequence patterns, construction of phylogenetic trees, gene function prediction, gene structure prediction, genomic annotation and comparative genomics.

BCBIO 401. Fundamentals of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology I.

(3-0) Cr. 3. F. Prereq: BCBIO 211 and basic programming experience (e.g. COM S 207, COM S 208, COM S 227 or permission of instructor)
Application of computer science to molecular biology. String algorithms, sequence alignments, indexing data structures, homology search methods, pattern recognition, fragment assembly, genome annotation, construction of bioinformatics databases, and gathering and distribution of biological information with the Internet.

BCBIO 402. Fundamentals of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology II.

(3-0) Cr. 3. S. Prereq: BCBIO 401
Genomics: Gene structure prediction, gene function prediction and comparative genomics. Post-genomics: Gene expression studies, DNA microarrays, next-generation sequencing of transcriptome. Structural biology: Protein and RNA structure predictions, structure representation, comparison and visualization. Systems biology: Signal transduction pathway inference, biological networks and systems.

BCBIO 442. Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Techniques.

(0.2-0.5) Cr. 0.5. Repeatable, maximum of 2 credits. S.SS. Prereq: BIOL 314 recommended
Modular minicourses consisting of guided tutorials and hands-on computer software exercises focused on fundamental problems, approaches, and software applications in bioinformatics and computational biology. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 442A. Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Techniques: Sequence Database Searching.

(0.2-0.5) Cr. 0.5. Repeatable, maximum of 2 credits. S.SS. Prereq: BIOL 314 recommended
Modular minicourses consisting of guided tutorials and hands-on computer software exercises focused on fundamental problems, approaches, and software applications in bioinformatics and computational biology. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 442B. Bioinformatics and Computational Biology: Protein Structure Databases, Visualization, and Prediction.

(0.2-0.5) Cr. 0.5. Repeatable, maximum of 2 credits. S.SS. Prereq: BIOL 314 recommended
Modular minicourses consisting of guided tutorials and hands-on computer software exercises focused on fundamental problems, approaches, and software applications in bioinformatics and computational biology. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 442C. Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Techniques: Phylogenetic Analysis.

(0.2-0.5) Cr. 0.5. Repeatable, maximum of 2 credits. S.SS. Prereq: BIOL 314 recommended
Modular minicourses consisting of guided tutorials and hands-on computer software exercises focused on fundamental problems, approaches, and software applications in bioinformatics and computational biology. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 442D. Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Techniques: Microarray Analysis.

(0.2-0.5) Cr. 0.5. Repeatable, maximum of 2 credits. S.SS. Prereq: BIOL 314 recommended
Modular minicourses consisting of guided tutorials and hands-on computer software exercises focused on fundamental problems, approaches, and software applications in bioinformatics and computational biology. Offered on a satisfactory-fail basis only.

BCBIO 444. Introduction to Bioinformatics.

(Cross-listed with BCB, BIOL, COM S, CPR E, GEN). (4-0) Cr. 4. F. Prereq: MATH 165 or STAT 401 or equivalent
Broad overview of bioinformatics with a significant problem-solving component, including hands-on practice using computational tools to solve a variety of biological problems. Topics include: database searching, sequence alignment, gene prediction, RNA and protein structure prediction, construction of phylogenetic trees, comparative and functional genomics, systems biology.

BCBIO 490. Independent Study.

Cr. 1-5. Repeatable, maximum of 9 credits. F.S.SS. Prereq: BCBIO 211, junior or senior classification, permission of instructor
Students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences may use no more than 9 credits of BCBIO 490 and 491 toward graduation.

BCBIO 491. Team Research Projects..

Cr. 1-5. Repeatable, maximum of 9 credits. Prereq: BCBIO 211, junior or senior classification, permission of instructor
Research projects in bioinformatics and computational biology done by teams of students. Students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences may use no more than 9 credits of BCBIO 490 and 491 toward graduation.