Learning outcomes
Recent advances in technology have revolutionized biology enabling the collection of large sets of genomics, metabolomics and proteomics data. The new discipline of systems biology aims to meet the most important challenge of the 'post-omics' era: to understand the mechanisms of the biomolecular networks. The course presents the design principles of biological systems, and highlights the recurring circuit elements that make up biolomolecular networks. It provides a simple mathematical framework which can be used to understand and even design biological circuits.
Brief description of content
The course is introductory, specialist terms are largely avoided, focusing instead on several well-studied biological systems that concisely demonstrate key principles.
The course will present an integrated approach in which the quantitative experimental data from biochemical and cell biology research is used to create predictive models of cellular systems. Examples will be discussed to demonstrate how cell-level functions arise and why mechanistic knowledge of the biochemical systems allows us to predict behaviors leading to different cell fate decisions, and also to disease states and drug responses.
