Chautauqua 2007
sporte | June 28, 2007When we make primer sequences for an assay, two characteristics we're concerned with are the specificity of the primers and the sensitivity.
We can use blastn to evaluate whether or not our primers are likely to work.
Specificity: The specificity of a primer set is related to whether the primers are binding only to the sequences that we want to detect or to additional sequences. If our primers bind to lots of sequences - or even unrelated sequences- then they are probably not specific enough. If we made primers that were complementary to a polyA addition site or to an Alu sequence, we would…
sporte | June 28, 2007X71396, U37840, AF242849, Z11977, K03291, AY568721, NM_113475, NM_001056982, NM_001048464, NM_001060543, NM_001060540, NM_001061783, NM_129923, NM_129922, NM_001067252, NM_001056384, NM_001053908, NM_001058687, NM_001059721, NM_001062013, NM_111344, NM_115302, NM_001056908, NM_112085
sporte | June 21, 2007If we asked any biologist to pick the five most important techniques in biology, that list would certainly include PCR.
PCR stands for Polymerase Chain Reaction. It's used everywhere. We use it to amplify DNA for cloning, we use it for diagnostic tests, for DNA sequencing, for identifying pathogens, for identifying our long-lost relatives (and sometimes parents), and in forensics. If there's a technique that involves DNA, PCR is probably involved somewhere, too.
Since PCR is such an important technique, and we're going to be using PCR in our course, it's worth checking out a few…
sporte | May 29, 2007The first research assignment for our Alaska NSF Chautauqua course has been posted. Your task is to find a wound-inducible plant gene, learn something about it, and post a description in the comment section. We've already had one excellent answer, but I know there are at least 54 wound-inducible genes, so I expect to see more.
Once we get our genes in order (and possibly before), we'll talk more about designing an experiment for detecting gene expression.
In the meantime, I have some pre-course reading assignments to help you prepare.
tags: plants, Alaska, NSF Chautauqua courses,…
sporte | May 27, 2007An introduction to our Alaskan NSF Chautauqua course and a pre-course assignment.
I don't know how well this will work, but I thought it might be interesting this year to experiment with blogging about our course and sharing some of our experiences with the rest of the world. Here's your chance readers, if you'd like to do some of the assignments, you are very welcome to follow along and give it a try.
tags: plants, Alaska, NSF Chautauqua courses, bioinformatics, sequence analysis, evolution, wound inducible genes, moose
I'm not likely to get all the assignments or course info posted on-…