Bioinformatics Core Mission


The Bioinformatics Core provides informatics and statistical support for the design and analysis of molecular biological experiments. We meet with investigators to identify consensus needs and then develop "pipelines" consisting of support services that efficiently satisfy these needs. Our current focus is on development of proteomics capabilities. Our Affymetric GeneChip services, developed by VGN and provided by Dr. Jeffrey Bond, are very mature and have produced a wealth of results for researchers. We continue to work to identify emerging consensus needs, for example, in the areas of laboratory information management/exchange.

Software Platform

The UVM BioDesktop, http://biodesktop.uvm.edu, designed by Rama Kocherlakota and implemented with help from Ramiro Barrantes, is our primary informatics platform. The BioDesktop includes support for: The NCBI data model A graphical folder-based internet file system A flexible security model that facilitates sharing within a group or web publication A general object-relational mapping strategy that facilitates additional of new data types.