By the generous award provided by the Supplemental Training Program (STEP) through the Society of Toxicology and funding from the Jackson Laboratory (JAX), I was able to attend the Short Course on Systems Genetics at the High Seas Conference Center during fall 2015. The seven-day course is offered by JAX and includes both graduate students and postdoctoral scholars and aims to train scientists in statistical and computational methods for genetic analysis. The course also is offered in Bar Harbor, Maine, with time allotted to explore the nearby Acadia National Park.
The course consisted of informational lectures presented to us by world renowned scientists, hands-on labs focused on utilizing the tools presented in lecture to perform our own analysis, and lastly evening discussion sessions in which students presented their research goals to each other and the faculty present. The lectures included introductions to complex concepts such as quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, RNA sequencing analysis, human genome wide association studies (GWAS), and correlation analysis. We participated in labs that allowed us to use open source resource tools such as R studio, EMASE, and Kallisto to analyze genomic data.
Students were introduced to a new category of genetically bred mice offered from JAX. These mice are known as the diversity outbred (DO), with each mouse having a different genetic makeup than the other. This new mouse model is designed to more closely resemble that of the human population and to work as a tool to better understand human susceptibility to disease. This topic was fascinating to me, as it presents an entirely new avenue for scientists to explore environmental exposures in a relevant model.
The short course on systems genetics at JAX provided me with an invaluable professional development experience. The area of genomics and big data are the future of our scientific field, and by having this exposure and training, I’ve been given a rare opportunity. While the information is still largely foreign to me, I have been introduced to basic computational methods to begin analyzing genomic data on my own. I’m very grateful for the experience that I had at the High Seas Conference Center and was able to network with students and faculty from diverse backgrounds and a host of different institutions. I also was exposed to technological advances and tools that are unavailable at my University and that I will implement in my dissertation this upcoming year.
Graduate students can apply for STEP funding to pursue training in identified areas of professional/scientific development that are necessary for them to achieve their career goals but outside the immediate scope of their graduate training and research program. The next deadline will be in May 2016 and more information will be posted on the STEP website.