Introduction to Computational Biochemistry

(2 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This course focused on a range of topics related to molecular biology and biochemistry, with an emphasis on using computational tools to understand biological systems. In this course, students participated in several computing practicals and data handling sessions to learn how to use the UCSC genome browser to explore genomics data, as well as the software XPP-Aut to simulate protein behavior within the cell cycle. The course also covered the de-facto standard molecular graphics program, PyMOL, and how to use web-based techniques to analyze protein structures. Students learned how to use molecular dynamics simulation packages such as GROMACS to perform protein simulations and analyze protein structural properties. Additionally, the course covered basic Python programming concepts such as object types, operators, loops, and conditionals, as well as using Jupyter notebooks for code execution. Finally, students learned how to handle and analyze data using R to fit and plot generalized binding data.