Master of Science [M.S] [Bioinformatics and Systems Biology] From University of California

On the one hand, recent and novel technologies produce biological data sets of ever-increasing resolution that reveal not only genomic sequences but also RNA and protein abundances, their interactions with one another, their subcellular localization, and the identity and abundance of other biological molecules. This requires the development and application of sophisticated computational methods, encompassed by the field of bioinformatics.

On the other hand, biomedical research has risen to the challenge of understanding the integrated functions of thousands of genes. Physical and functional interaction networks chart connectivities, reveal functional modules, and provide clues on the functioning of specific genes. Using mathematical models of the stochastic and dynamical events of biology reveals fundamental design principles and allows for virtual experimentation. This is a focus of the field of systems biology.

In addition, rapidly increasing capabilities of rapid molecular and genomic analyses in the clinic promise to transform medical practice in unprecedented ways. The ability to cross-query data and knowledge bases provides opportunities and challenges to computational sciences interfacing with medicine to produce support systems for data management, text and language processing, privacy, clinical decision support, and data mining for knowledge discovery. These define the goals of biomedical informatics.