BIOL 53901 - Microbiomes

Microbiomes are described as communities of microorganisms that inhabit a particular environment. While the focus is often on the human body and role of these microorganisms in human disease, microbiomes can be found in animals, plants, soils, aquatic environments, and anywhere else a community of microorganisms exist. The expansion of next-generation sequencing technologies has now made the study of these large and complex communities possible and accessible to a broader audience. In this course, students will learn about different types of microbiome communities and how they are analyzed. Using open-source software, students will learn how to analyze the community composition of microbiomes and draw conclusions using a variety of statistical analyses and visualization tools. Other approaches to analyzing microbiomes, such as “omics” technologies, will also be discussed.

Preparation for Course
P: BIOL 21800 with a grade of C- or better or graduate status.

Cr. 3.