Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary research field combining computer science methods and statistical/mathematical modelling to analyse biological measurement data. With the recent advances in high-throughput sequencing, bioinformatics software tools are now enabling completely new ways of conducting research in genetics, genomics, and transcriptomics, with direct applications in cancer research and other biomedical areas that make use of sequencing. Often the real breakthroughs arise in the collaboration between method developers and domain experts. The Bioinformatics research groups aim for building a solid basis for method development and introducing novel applications of bioinformatics to advance the Life Science (strategic focus area of) research at the University of Helsinki.

Our research ranges from basic research in our main disciplines, computer science, genetics, genomics, and biomedicine, to the development of specialized bioinformatics methods and tools. The research topics are listed in the individual research group pages. Some highlight projects of shared activities are gathered in the projects page.

The Bioinformatics research groups are in charge of organizing the teaching in the study tracks algorithmic bioinformatics, applied bioinformatics, and systems biology and medicine in the Life Science Informatics Master's Programme.
In addition, the groups contribute to several other study programmes in variety of disciplines such as computer science, genetics, genomics, and biomedicine.