DNA Metabarcoding: Data processing and interpretation
About the course
PhD course for students with an interest in plant and algae biodiversity assessment.
Maximum 15 participants.
If more than 15 applicants, priority will be given as follows:
1. Members of the Graduate school Photosyntech The course is connected to Photosyntech and half of the places will be reserved for Photosyntech members.
2. Places not filled by Photosyntech members can be distributed to other interested PhD students with a second priority to students of Forbio Graduate School.
Biodiversity loss, often referred to as biodiversity crisis, is a global environmental problem causing international concern and demanding urgent counteracting measures. Biodiversity is commonly defined in terms of a number of species present in a particular environment, or in total in the world. This makes species not only one of the fundamental biological concepts but also a focus of global conservation efforts. Currently morphology-based species delimitation provides the baseline for conservation of most plant and animal groups. Development of molecular systematics and computational algorithms has been gradually bringing more and more genetic based approaches to characterizing species as evolutionary units, as compared to morphology based taxonomical units. The course focuses on high-throughput screening approach of DNA sequence variation (DNA Metabarcoding) for species identification and discovery that provides rapid assessments of biodiversity, animal diet assessment, reconstruction of paleo communities, among others. The course will consist of a series of lectures and bioinformatics practicals introducing different aspects of DNA metabarcoding. Bioinformatics practicals will introduce data analysis from raw sequences to taxonomic group assignment to enable basic ecological conclusion.
Admission requirements
Objectives of the course
After the course the students should have
Knowledge:
- You learn about DNA based molecular identification for species diagnostics: DNA Barcoding and Metabarcoding
Skills:
- You acquire skills for analyses of raw sequence data: taxonomic assignment and phylogeny reconstruction for species identification and discovery.
General competence:
- You improve your analytical skills to use molecular tools for biodiversity assessment, animal diet assessment and reconstruction of paleo communities.
Credit reduction
If you pass the examination in this course, you will get an reduction in credits (as stated below), if you previously have passed the following courses:
- BIO-3025 DNA Metabarcoding: Data processing and interpretation 5 ects
Teaching methods
Language of instruction and examination
EnglishSchedule
The schedules are normally finalized and published well in advance of the start of the semester, often a few weeks beforehand. This gives students the opportunity to organize their studies and prepare for upcoming activities.
It is recommended to check the schedule regularly, as changes may occur.
Examination
| Oral exam | Duration: 30 Minutes Weighting: 1/2 |
Grade: Passed / Not Passed |
| Assignment | Weighting: 1/2 |
Grade: Passed / Not Passed |
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