S HAH A BDUL L ATIF

U NIVERSITY KHAIRPUR

ASSIGNMENTROLL NO. BC0113-01

NAME: ABDUL-RAHMAN SHAIKH

CLASS: BS (P-IV)

DEPARTMENT: BIOCHEMISTRY

SUBJECT: BIOINFORMATICS

TEACHER: RESAPECTABLE SIR MAQBOOL AHMED SOOMRO

ASSIGNMENT TOPIC: BIOINFORMATICS AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Table of ContentsIntroduction to Bioinformatics....................................................................................................................3

History of Bioinformatics............................................................................................................................4

Aims and Objectives....................................................................................................................................5

Uses of Bioinformatics in different fields....................................................................................................6

Importance of Bioinformatics......................................................................................................................7

Systems Biology.........................................................................................................................................7

Genomics.................................................................................................................................................7

Proteomics...............................................................................................................................................8

References...................................................................................................................................................9

BIOINFORMATICS AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Introduction to BioinformaticsBioinformatics is the application of computer technology to the management of biological

information. Computers are used to gather, store, analyze and integrate biological and genetic

information which can then be applied to gene-based drug discovery and development. The need

for Bioinformatics capabilities has been precipitated by the explosion of publicly available

genomic information resulting from the Human Genome Project. [01]

The goal of this project determination of the sequence of the entire human genome

(approximately three billion base pairs) will be reached by the year 2002. The science of

Bioinformatics, which is the melding of molecular biology with computer science, is essential to

the use of genomic information in understanding human diseases and in the identification of new

molecular targets for drug discovery. [01]

In recognition of this, many universities, government institutions and pharmaceutical firms have

formed bioinformatics groups, consisting of computational biologists and bioinformatics

computer scientists. Such groups will be key to unraveling the mass of information generated by

large scale sequencing efforts underway in laboratories around the world. [01]

Bioinformatics has become an important part of many areas of biology. In

experimental molecular biology, bioinformatics techniques such as image and signal

processing allow, extraction of useful results from large amounts of raw data. In the field of

genetics and genomics, it aids in sequencing and annotating genomes and their

observed mutations. It plays a role in the text mining of biological literature and the development

of biological and gene ontologies to organize and query biological data. It also plays a role in the

analysis of gene and protein expression and regulation. Bioinformatics tools aid in the

comparison of genetic and genomic data and more generally in the understanding of evolutionary

aspects of molecular biology. At a more integrative level, it helps analyze and catalogue the

biological pathways and networks that are an important part of systems biology. In structural

biology, it aids in the simulation and modeling of DNA, RNA, and protein structures as well as

molecular interactions. [01]

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History of BioinformaticsHistorically, the term bioinformatics did not mean what it means today. Paulien

Hogeweg and Ben Hesper coined it in 1970 to refer to the study of information processes in

biotic systems.[1][2][3] This definition placed bioinformatics as a field parallel to biophysics (the

study of physical processes in biological systems) or biochemistry (the study of chemical

processes in biological systems).[01] Bioinformatics started over a century ago when Gregor

Mendel, an Austrian monk cross-fertilized different colours of the same species of flowers.

Mendel illustrated that the inheritance of traits could be more easily explained if it was

controlled by factors passed down from generation to generation. Since Mendel, bioinformatics

and genetic record keeping have come a long way. [02]

In 1988, the Human Genome organization (HUGO) was founded. The first complete genome

map was published of bacteria Haemophilus Influenza.In 1990, the Human Genome Project was

started. By 1991, a total of 1879 human genes had been mapped. In France, in 1993, Genethon, a

human genome research center produced a physical map of the human genome. Three years later

, Genethon published the final version of the human genetic map. This concluded the end of the

first phase of the Human Genome Project. [02]

Bioinformatics was fuelled by the need to create huge databases , such as Genbank, EMBL and

DNA Database of Japan to store and compare the DNA sequence data erupting from the human

genome and other genome sequencing projects.(2). It enables researchers to analyze the terabytes

of data being produced by the Human Genome Project. Gene sequence databases and related

analysis tools all help scientists to determine whether and how a particular molecule is directly

involved in a disease process. That in turn , helps them find new and better drug targets.

Bioinformatics can be thought of as a central hub that unites several disciplines and

methodologies - molecular biology; information technology/information management;

applications/databases; computational resources; CADD (Computer Aided Drug Design); and

Genomics/Proteomics/x-omics . Bioinformatics brings together these activities and this may

explain why we get so many definitions for bioinformatics. [02]

Bioinformatics concerns the development of new tools for the analysis of genomic and molecular

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biological data including sequence analysis ,genetic algorithms,phylogenetic inference,genme

database organization and mining,optical computation and holographic memory,pattern

recognition and image analysis, biologically inspired computational models. [02]

Aims and ObjectivesTo study how normal cellular activities are altered in different disease states, the biological data

must be combined to form a comprehensive picture of these activities. Therefore, the field of

bioinformatics has evolved such that the most pressing task now involves the analysis and

interpretation of various types of data. This includes nucleotide and amino acid sequences,

protein domains, and protein structures. The actual process of analyzing and interpreting data is

referred to as computational biology. Important sub-disciplines within bioinformatics and

computational biology include:

Development and implementation of computer programs that enable efficient access to, use and

management of, various types of information

Development of new algorithms (mathematical formulas) and statistical measures that assess

relationships among members of large data sets. For example, there are methods to locate a gene

within a sequence, to predict protein structure and/or function, and to cluster protein sequences

into families of related sequences.

The primary goal of bioinformatics is to increase the understanding of biological processes.

What sets it apart from other approaches, however, is its focus on developing and applying

computationally intensive techniques to achieve this goal. Examples include: pattern recognition,

data mining, machine learning algorithms, and visualization. Major research efforts in the field

include sequence alignment, gene finding, genome assembly, drug design, drug discovery,

protein structure alignment, protein structure prediction, prediction of gene expression and

protein–protein interactions, genome-wide association studies, the modeling of evolution and cell

division/mitosis.

Bioinformatics now entails the creation and advancement of databases, algorithms,

computational and statistical techniques, and theory to solve formal and practical problems

arising from the management and analysis of biological data.

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Over the past few decades, rapid developments in genomic and other molecular research

technologies and developments in information technologies have combined to produce a

tremendous amount of information related to molecular biology. Bioinformatics is the name

given to these mathematical and computing approaches used to glean understanding of biological

processes.

Common activities in bioinformatics include mapping and analyzing DNA and protein

sequences, aligning DNA and protein sequences to compare them, and creating and viewing 3-D

models of protein structures. [01]

Uses of Bioinformatics in different fields Microbial genome applications Molecular medicine Personalised medicine Preventative medicine Gene therapy Drug development Antibiotic resistance Evolutionary studies Waste cleanup Biotechnology Climate change Studies Alternative energy sources Crop improvement Forensic analysis Bio-weapon creation Insect resistance Improve nutritional quality Development of Drought resistant varieties Vetinary Science

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Importance of BioinformaticsBioinformatics has become an important part of many areas of biology. In experimental

molecular biology, bioinformatics techniques such as image and signal processing allow

extraction of useful results from large amounts of raw data. In the field of genetics and genomics,

it aids in sequencing and annotating genomes and their observed mutations. It plays a role in the

textual mining of biological literature and the development of biological and gene ontologies to

organize and query biological data. It plays a role in the analysis of gene and protein expression

and regulation. Bioinformatics tools aid in the comparison of genetic and genomic data and more

generally in the understanding of evolutionary aspects of molecular biology. At a more

integrative level, it helps analyze and catalogue the biological pathways and networks that are an

important part of systems biology. In structural biology, it aids in the simulation and modeling of

DNA, RNA, and protein structures as well as molecular interactions. Researchers affiliated with

our program conduct research in systems biology, genomics, and proteomics.

Systems Biology

Systems biology is an emerging approach applied to biomedical and biological scientific

research. Systems biology is a biology-based inter-disciplinary field of study that focuses on

complex interactions within biological systems, using a more holistic perspective (holism instead

of the more traditional reductionism) approach to biological and biomedical research.

Particularly from year 2000 onwards, the concept has been used widely in the biosciences in a

variety of contexts. One of the outreaching aims of systems biology is to model and discover

emergent properties, properties of cells, tissues and organisms functioning as a system whose

theoretical description is only possible using techniques which fall under the remit of systems

biology.

GenomicsGenomics is a discipline in genetics that applies recombinant DNA, DNA sequencing methods,

and bioinformatics to sequence, assemble, and analyze the function and structure of genomes

(the complete set of DNA within a single cell of an organism). The field includes efforts to

determine the entire DNA sequence of organisms and fine-scale genetic mapping. The field also

includes studies of intragenomic phenomena such as heterosis, epistasis, pleiotropy and other

interactions

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between loci and alleles within the genome. In contrast, the investigation of the roles and

functions of single genes is a primary focus of molecular biology or genetics and is a common

topic of modern medical and biological research. Research of single genes does not fall into the

definition of genomics unless the aim of this genetic, pathway, and functional information

analysis is to elucidate its effect on, place in, and response to the entire genome’s networks.

ProteomicsProteomics is the large-scale study of proteins, particularly their structures and functions.

Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, as they are the main components of the physiological

metabolic pathways of cells. Proteomics, formed on the basis of the research and development of

the Human Genome Project, is also an emerging scientific research, involving exploration of the

proteome from the overall level of intracellular protein composition, structure, and its own

unique activity patterns. It is an important component of functional genomics. [03]

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References1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioinformatics2. http://bioinformaticshistory.blogspot.com 3. Importance are directly searched from Google

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