Category Archives: News & Archives

New Challenges in the Fast Changing Landscape of Bioinformatics

The world of DNA sequencing and bioinformatics has evolved at a staggering pace. In 2009, the biggest problem for researchers was creating an efficient solution for sequencing DNA. At that time, sequencing cost of $100,000 for a single human and took 30 days of chemical processing to produce the raw sequencing output. In four years,…

Model Virus Structure Shows Why There’s No Cure for Common Cold

In a pair of landmark studies that exploit the genetic sequencing of the “missing link” cold virus, rhinovirus C, scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have constructed a three-dimensional model of the pathogen that shows why there is no cure yet for the common cold. Writing today (Oct. 28, 2013) in the journal Virology, a…

Hitchhiking Virus Confirms Saga of Ancient Human Migration

A study of the full genetic code of a common human virus offers a dramatic confirmation of the "out-of-Africa" pattern of human migration, which had previously been documented by anthropologists and studies of the human genome. The virus under study, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), usually causes nothing more severe than cold sores around…

Jobs for a Masters Degree in Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics is a branch of biotechnology that uses computer technology and other methods to manage and analyze biological data. Those who hold a master's degree in bioinformatics typically use a combination of mathematics, statistics, computer science and biological research data to further scientific studies. One example of a large-scale bioinformatics project is the Human Genome…

Work needed to make algal biofuel viable, study suggests

Although biofuels from algae hold great promise, Cornell researchers find that more innovation is needed to make the technology economically and energetically viable at a commercial scale. To date, researchers have struggled to determine if the nonrenewable energy it takes to make a gallon of algal biofuel will be equal to, less than or greater…