Work Type
Presentation
Publication Date
2006
Name of Conference
2006 MLA Annual Meeting and Exhibition, Phoenix, AZ
Language
English
Document Type
Presentation Poster
Recommended Citation
Wang, Lili; Lipsey, Kim; and Murray, Carol, "The bioinformatics program at Washington University's Bernard Becker Medical Library: Making it happen." 2006 MLA Annual Meeting and Exhibition, Phoenix, AZ. 2006. Paper 10.
https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/becker_pubs/10
COinS
Description
The need for a Bioinformatics Program became apparent after repeated requests from researchers for bioinformatics resources, and the University’s announcement of BioMed 21, a 300-million-dollar biomedical science initiative to bring “new knowledge of the human genetic blueprint to the patient's bedside and change how illnesses are understood, diagnosed and successfully treated.” A Bioinformatics Specialist with a strong background in the fields of Molecular Biology and Biostatistics was hired. Program development started in 2002. Initially, three core courses were developed, Sequence Similarity Search, Genetic Variation and Human Genome Resources. Each of these courses was offered twice per semester. Additionally, partnerships were established within the University Medical School Community (e.g., Genome Sequencing Center) to license and teach Spotfire, a software package used to analyze microarray data. From March through May of 2005, seven Spotfire classes were taught. Each Spotfire class consisted of seven hours of classroom work. Also, in-depth consultations were scheduled with faculty and researchers to address their specific needs. They suggested other software packages for Becker Library to purchase and manage, including Lasergene and CSD (Cambridge Crystal Structure Database). Efforts to reach outside of the University Community were made through the development of a Bioinformatics website.