Unit name | Genome Evolution |
---|---|
Unit code | BIOLM0033 |
Credit points | 10 |
Level of study | M/7 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Professor. Pisani |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
Scientific programming, Statistics and R. |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | School of Biological Sciences |
Faculty | Faculty of Life Sciences |
This unit will introduce students to the theoretical and practical aspects of the study of genome evolution. These include the design of analyses and use of tools such as phylogenetic trees and networks to identify pattern of genomic change (e.g. identification of gene duplications and of horizontally transferred genes) across the tree of life. The students will have the opportunity to plan, develop and implement their own evolutionary analyses to answer a wide variety of biological questions.
The aim of this unit will be to:
The Learning Outcomes (LOs) for this unit are:
A: Knowledge and Understanding:
B: Intellectual Skills/Attributes:
C: Other Skills /Attributes (Practical/Professional/Transferable):
The unit will be delivered through a mixture of short lectures followed by individual exercises with computers. Blackboard will be used to engage students with the unit content.
A summative computer assessment will consist of a final computer task and an essay integrating all the learning objectives.
Nacimento et al. (2017) A biologist guide to Bayesian phylogenetic analysis. Nat Ecol Evol. 1:1446–1454.
Yang Z. (2014) Molecular Evolution: a statistical approach. Oxford University Press.
Soucy et al. (2015) Horizontal gene transfer: building the web of life. Nature Reviews Genetics 16:472–482.