BIOINFORMATICS PRINCIPLES AND BIG DATA ANALYSIS APPLIED TO ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY

Università degli Studi
"G. d'Annunzio"

Chieti - Pescara

Single discipline educational activity

Course Sheet

Course code:

PBA010

Academic Year of enrolment:

2022

Year of supply:

2024/2025

Type of Course:

Elective Course

Degree:

Course of 1st Cycle Degree in SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY

Disciplinary Sector:

Biochemistry

Language:

Italian

Location:

CHIETI

Credits:

Programme Year:

Professor and Collaborators:

RONCI Maurizio

Cycle:

First semester

Obligatory attendance:

Yes

Hours of classroom activity:

Individual study hours:

Prerequisites:

The main prerequisites are the knowledge of the basics of mathematics and physics for the understanding of mathematical functions and for the relative graphic interpretation of the same; Knowledge of the basics of general and organic chemistry.
Pre-requisites: Mathematics, Physics, General Chemistry, Organic chemistry.

Objectives

At the end of the course the students will be able to: understand the computational methods applied to the treatment of big data; analytically evaluate distribution and effects of the main environmental contaminants.

Contents

• Principles of statistics and bioinformatics.
• Computational methods and big data.
• Environmental Contaminants: Sources of Exposure, Biological Mechanisms, and Impacts on Health.
• Big data analytics for human health.

Extended Syllabus

Principles of statistics: normal and binomial distribution, random variables, and distribution functions. Multivariate analysis. Data visualization. PCA, cluster analysis and classification methods.
Introduction to bioinformatics: DNA, RNA and protein sequences. Computational biology and sequence alignment. Genetics Epigenomics Transcriptomics Proteomics Metabolomics. Big data: definitions and classification.
Main environmental contaminants: Arsenic, Lead, Mercury, Vinyl Chloride, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Benzene, Cadmium, Polycyclic Aromatic. Carcinogenic, Organic Hazardous Air Pollutants. Environmental Contaminants of Emerging Concern.

Recommended Bibliography

• REBECCA C. FRY: “Systems Biology in TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH” Elsevier Academic Press.
• Maria Cristina Mariani, Osei Kofi Tweneboah, Maria Pia Beccar-Varela: “Data Science in Theory and Practice” John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
• teaching materials provided by the lecturer.

Methods of Provision

Conventional

Teaching Methods

Frontal lessons.

Evaluation methods

Verification of learning:

Oral exam: questions related to several topics explained during the lectures in which the interpretation and the discussion of concepts and data is required.

Contacts/More Information

3 CFU – 24 hours. Office hours to be prebooked (by e-mail or phone).

Università degli Studi
"G. d'Annunzio"

Chieti - Pescara

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