Computational Biology
Modern biomedical research cannot endure without the
most powerful tools from information
science. Unfortunately, most bioinformatics tools are now
developed by mathematicians and computer scientists
lacking an understanding of the needs of biologists and
biomedical researchers. The FfAME brings together both
areas of expertise, often within a single scientist, to
use informatics with evolutionary models to interpret
experimental data, develop predictive models, and support
planetary biology and medicine.
Naturally organized genome sequence databases were
invented by scientists now working at FfAME, as were the
first convincing tools to predict protein folds from primary
sequence data, and some of the first tools to
connect evolutionary sequence divergence to functional
change in proteins. Ongoing work is developing better tools
for evolutionary modeling, better software to visualize
evolutionary events in the context of structural biolgy,
and better strategies for predictive phylogenomics. Our
goal is to enable scientific research and education by
providing resources that effortlessly apply multiple lines
of evidence from different scientific disciplines (for
example molecular evolution, structural biology and
paleontology) to illuminate problems in science and
technology.
Molecular models of sequence evolution
The FfAME is developing advanced models for analyzing
divergent evolution of proteins to join molecular
evolution and structural biology to support functional
analysis.
Tools for visualization and analysis
The FfAME is developing better software to analyze,
display and combine the results of molecular evolutionary
analysis on proteins having biomedical significance.
(NIH)
Read more about this study
Developing new molecular dating tools
The FfAME is constructing a comprehensive model for
vertebrate evolution using advanced dating tools. This
groups genes that duplicated at about the same time and
ties duplication events to the paleontological record.
Developing better databases for research
The FfAME is developing advanced databases for
pharmacophylogenomics, allowing more rapid analysis of
human disease (such as cancer, hypertension and
inflammation) and to better understand vertebrate
evolution
