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9:00
Systems biology
Bernhard Palsson
University of California at San Diego |
Abstract
Systems biology has grown rapidly in over past few years and is believed by
many to be a transforming development in the life sciences. This field has
grown mainly around four areas of emphasis: 1) generation of high-throughput
data for organisms and diseases of interest, 2) reconstruction of the
biochemical reaction and interaction networks that underlie cellular functions,
3) the development of mathematical methods to characterize the functional
states (i.e., physiological states of networks) and 4) the use of
computer-aided design in biological experimentation. Activities in these four
areas will be discussed.
Biography
Bernhard Palsson is a Professor of Bioengineering and Adjunct Professor
Medicine at the University of California, San Diego where his research focuses
on 1) reconstruction of genome-scale biochemical reaction networks, 2)
development of mathematical analysis procedures for genome-scale models, and 3)
experimental verification of genome-scale models. Prof. Palsson holds a Ph.D.
from the University of Wisconsin (1984) and prior to joining UCSD held a
faculty position at the University of Michigan (1984-1995). Prof. Palsson is
the author of over 200 peer reviewed scientific articles, and of the recently
published book "Systems Biology: Properties of Reconstructed Networks", he also
holds over 20 U.S. biotechnology patents. Prof. Palsson is the recipient of
several fellowship awards, is a member of the editorial boards of several
bioengineering and biotechnology journals, and has co-founded several
biotechnology companies, including Aastrom Biosciences, Cyntellect, and
Genomatica.
10:00
Combinatorial problems in bioinformatics
Pavel Pevzner
University of California at San Diego |
Abstract
In the last decade computer scientists have found new
computational challenges in molecular biology. I discuss recent advances and
present some open combinatorial problems in different areas of computational
molecular biology such as genome rearrangements, regulatory motif finding,
and molecular evolution.
Biography
Pavel Pevzner holds the Ronald R. Taylor Chair in Computer
Science. He joined the UCSD faculty in 2000, following five years in the
University of Southern California's Department of Mathematics. From 1992-95,
he was an associate professor at Pennsylvania State University. From 1990-92
Pevzner was a postdoctoral researcher at USC. He received his Ph.D in 1988
from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology. Pevzner is the author
of the book "Computational Molecular Biology: An Algorithmic Approach" (MIT
Press, 2000) and also "Introduction to Bioinformatics Algorithms",
co-authored with Neil Jones (MIT Press, 2004). He is an executive editor of
the "Journal of Computational Biology," and co-founder of the International
Conference on Research in Computational Biology (RECOMB).
11:00
Population genetics
Nicholas Schork
University of California at San Diego |
Abstract
The Human Genome Project, the International HapMap Project, the Cancer Genome
Project, and related Human DNA sequence initiatives, have raised a number of
questions about Human genetic diversity. These questions range from human
population origins and migration patterns, admixture among humans from
different geographic locations, the exploitation of genomic diversity in gene
discovery (i.e., mapping) approaches, and the accommodation of this diversity
in medical and public health practices. In this talk, descriptions of the
motivations and resources associated with these very large-scale initiatives
will be provided. In addition, the talk will focus on an overview and
description of the open questions in the field of modern applied human
population genetics that invite mathematical and statistical challenges.
Biography
Nicholas Schork is currently a Professor in the Departments of Biostatistics
and Psychiatry at the University of California at San Diego. He is also an SDSC
fellow, a Project Leader for Cal-IT2, Co-Driector of the Center for Human
Genetics and Genomics, and Director of Bioinformatics at the Cancer Center.
Prior to his appointment at UCSD, Dr. Schork was an Associate Professor of
Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland,
Ohio and an Associate Professor of Biostatistics at Harvard University. He was
also formerly the Associate Director of the Program for Population Genetics at
the Harvard School of Public Health, as well as an Adjunct Associate Staff
Scientist at the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. Dr. Schork earned a
B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in Statistics, and a Ph.D.
in Epidemiology all from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr.
Schork's research interests are varied, but primarily focus on the
understanding the genetic basis of complex traits and diseases. Dr. Schork
develops mathematical, statistical, and computational models and analytic tools
that can be applied to genetic studies. In addition, much of his work considers
how one can integrate information from different studies and study designs in
order to draw inferences about the complexities that underlie disease and
phenotypic expression.
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