Exploring bioinformatics @ KAUST

-By Robert Lehmann, KAUST News

DNA and RNA are fundamental molecules encoding the building plan of every living organism. Sequencing methods for DNA and RNA have become ubiquitous tools for the life sciences and healthcare. For example, sequencing has opened up entirely new avenues of research in diverse fields, such as the study of evolution or the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of complex diseases like cancer. 

Due to the sheer amount of data generated by these methods, practitioners require extensive experience in handling, processing and analyzing large amounts of data. To meet an ever-increasing use of sequencing and need for computational analyses at KAUST, a week-long workshop covering the fundamentals of bioinformatics analysis of genomics and transcriptomics data took place in August on the University's campus. Targeted at students, postdoctoral fellows and senior researchers not necessarily trained in advanced data analytics, the workshop also focused on providing hands-on training in coding and analysis.

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