BIOL 4164: Bacteriophage Discovery

University of North Carolina, Charlotte

Along with the international SEA-PHAGES (Science Education Alliance-Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science) program, students complete the first component of the phage discovery and genomics platform: the isolation, purification, and amplification of new phages from environmental samples by using a specific bacterial host, coupled with electron microscopy and DNA isolation and analysis. The second component is the bioinformatic dissection of phage genomes using computational programs to identify genes, regulatory elements, and other genomic features. The second component occurs in a subsequent semester.