Whole-genome sequencing projects form a tremendous resource for biological discovery. Besides genome annotation, an important challenge arising from the availability of genomes is elucidation of the function of thousands of newly discovered genes, the prime goal of functional genomics. Curating literature and annotating genes accordingly is a labor-intensive task. Bioinformatics is a hybrid science that links biological data with techniques for information storage, distribution, and analysis to support multiple areas of scientific research, including biomedicine. Bioinformatics is fed by high-throughput data-generating experiments, including genomic sequence determinations and measurements of gene expression patterns. Database projects curate and annotate the data and then distribute it via the World Wide Web. Mining these data leads to scientific discoveries and to the identification of new clinical applications. In the field of medicine in particular, a number of important applications for bioinformatics have been discovered. For example, it is used to identify correlations between gene sequences and diseases, to predict protein structures from amino acid sequences, to aid in the design of novel drugs, and to tailor treatments to individual patients based on their DNA sequences (pharmacogenomics).

The current training programme is designed especially for the biologists so as to acquaint them with fundamentals of bioinformatics and its application. The key topics include:

1. Introduction to biological databases.
2. Sequence retrieval from biological databases.
3. Sequence alignment methods.
4. Phylogenetic analysis.
5. in-silico PCR and Primer designing.
6. Protein structure prediction
7. Biomolecular interactions and a glance of molecular simulations using various bioinformatics tools

N.B. More emphasis will be given on hands-on sessions with an aim to develop pratical skills on basic bioinformatics tools and techniques.

A total of 20 participants will be selected for the training on first come first served basis. Interested teachers, scientists and research scholars who have basic knowledge in computer application may apply for participation in the prescribed format on or before 12th December, 2018.

Accommodation may be provided to a limited number of participants in the university guesthouse subject to availability.