IGERT: Integrating Computational Science into Research in Biological Networks

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The Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program in Bioinformatics at Boston University is a highly successful interdisciplinary training program that has served as a model for other universities. With this renewal award, it will shift research emphasis to focus on biological networks. Research in molecular biology is shifting fundamentally towards the study of complex, multi-component networks that underlie the living cell. These networks are modeled in terms of their component interactions, regulatory properties, sub-networks or pathways, and system dynamics. Important examples include 1) biochemical pathways of metabolism, 2) protein-DNA interactions that regulate gene transcription, and 3) signaling pathways for cellular response to hormones and other molecules. Training will continue to stress computational and mathematical sciences, biology, and biochemistry and will incorporate innovation in an initial year-long research experience to include intensive wet-lab training in high-throughput data generation techniques, a team oriented "grand challenge" bioinformatics research project, and laboratory validation of computational predictions. An international perspective will be fostered through student fellowships for extended visits with collaborating faculty at partner institutions in Germany, Japan, and Israel. To disseminate successful training methodologies, the Program will sponsor a National Bioinformatics Education Workshop. It will provide undergraduate research opportunities in faculty labs through partnership with Boston University programs targeted to underrepresented groups and it will develop high school outreach activities, curricula and workshops, combining mathematics and biology. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.