Semester 1: Phage Hunters

A research-based laboratory class for first-years. Students join a national experiment organized by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, with the goal of isolating and characterizing bacteriophage viruses found in the soil in the St. Louis area. Laboratory work includes isolation and purification of your own phage, DNA isolation and restriction mapping, and EM characterization of your phage. Several WashU phage are selected for genome sequencing over winter break, and are annotated in the spring in Phage Bioinformatics. Students who successfully isolate and annotate a phage may become co-authors on a scientific paper. One-hour lecture, 1-hour discussion, and 3-hours lab per week.

Semester 2: Phage Bioinformatics

A research-based laboratory class for first-years. Students join a national experiment organized by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, with the goal of genomic characterization of a local phage. Laboratory work focuses on learning computer-based tools for genome analysis followed by annotation and comparative analysis of the genome of a phage (bacterial virus) that was isolated fall semester at WashU and sequenced over winter break. One-hour lecture, 1-hour discussion, and 3-hours lab per week.