Terry Gaasterland to Speak at Bioinformatics Conference Jun 19-20 2014, San Diego, CA

San Diego, CA, April 19, 2014 --(PR.com)-- Terry Gaasterland, Professor of Computational Biology and Genomics at University of California, San Diego will give a presentation on “Integrating exome sequencing, mRNA-seq, and microRNA-seq to identify genes and mechanisms in optic nerve degeneration” at the Bioinformatics & Pharmacogenomics: Managing and Analyzing Big Data Conference to be held in San Diego, CA on June 19-20, 2014 by GTCBio.

Dr. Gaasterland designs and uses computational tools to decipher and interrogate cell systems through integrated analysis of genomic and proteomic data. Her work aims to address the general question: How does regulation of transcription and translation modulate and affect cell state changes? She applies this approach to understand optic nerve degeneration in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). The genetics of POAG are complex; to date, no single causative genomic variant has been established as causing the disease.

Genome-wide sequencing of exons from protein-coding and non-coding genes in 333 patients with primary open angle glaucoma revealed over 100 associated SNP sites in over 70 genes. To rank and prioritize genes and generate hypotheses about molecular mechanisms disrupted by associated variant sites, mRNA and small RNA (microRNA) were sequenced from ocular tissues relevant to the disease.

Dr. Gaasterland will discuss analysis protocols and techniques for integrated data interpretation to construct putative regulatory networks underlying disease. Her approach revealed two strong candidate models explaining neurodegeneration in POAG. Data collection and analysis methods are generally applicable beyond glaucoma to other chronic, progressive diseases associated with aging.

The Bioinformatics & Pharmacogenomics: Managing and Analyzing Big Data Conference brings together a mix of academic and industry experts from leading affiliations (such as GSK, Takeda, Johns Hopkins, UCSD, Stanford, UCLA) to cover current and relevant aspects of sequencing platforms, data integration, personal genomics and pharmacogenomics.

This conference is also part of the Nucleic Acid Summit, which consists of this and three other conferences:

4th Next-Generation Sequencing
Non-Coding RNAs and RNAi Research & Therapeutics
Nucleic Acid Research & Discovery

For more information, please visit www.gtcbio.com/bioinformatics