Mar 29, 2024  
Undergraduate Catalog 2015-16 
    
Undergraduate Catalog 2015-16 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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BIOS 5460 - Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution


Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution is an advanced undergraduate/graduate course designed to provide students with a rigorous exposure to molecular data analysis and literature review. In this course students will learn the principles behind DNA data analysis for evolutionary studies. This will include phylogenetic analyses and studies of molecular evolution. Phylogenetic studies will involve the acquisition of comparative DNA sequence data, sequence alignment, statistical models of nucleotide substitutions, and tree estimation using parsimony, distance, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian methods of tree inference. Uses for phylogenetic data will involve tree-based evaluation of taxonomic classifications, comparative method, ancestral estimation, and character evolution. Part of the phylogenetic inference module will involve the use of parametric simulations to evaluate the performance of selected methods of tree inference as well as for phylogenetic hypothesis testing. For the molecular evolution portion of the course, we will investigate selected examples illustrating the effects of natural selection of DNA sequences.

Prerequisites & Corequisites: Prerequisite: Junior standing and at least 12 credits in biology, including BIOS 2500 with a grade of “C” or better, or instructor approval.

Credits: 3 hours

Notes: This course is approved to cover the capstone requirement for the Biology and Biomedical Sciences majors. Open to upperclass and graduate students.
When Offered: Spring, alternate years



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