Life Sciences 

Introduction to Bioinformatics

• Dates: June 30, 2025 to August 1, 2025
• Units: 4.00 Pre-College units, 9000 level
• Open to: 10th-12th grade students
• Application: Click here to apply!
• Application Deadline: Closed
• Course Delivery: Live Online
• Tuition: $2,000
• Schedule:
  • Students can expect 40 hours of work. 
  • Mondays through Thursdays - 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. PT.
• Prerequisites:
  • Required: High school AP biology and pre-calculus
  • Preferred: Statistics
• Instructor: Professor Goran Bozinovic

This synchronous online course provides an introduction to the theoretical foundations and practical applications of bioinformatics in the study of genes and proteins. Delivered in a combined lecture and computer lab format, the course is grounded in primary scientific literature and utilizes custom datasets to explore contemporary advancements in genomics and proteomics. Topics include genomic and biomolecular databases, next-generation sequencing technologies, genome and structural informatics, phylogenetics, and transcriptomics, all supported by foundational biostatistical concepts. Emphasis is placed on the use of computational tools and best analytical practices, with hands-on instruction in the R programming language.

• Formulate testable null and alternative hypotheses for biological investigations.
• Design experiments with appropriate biological and technical replication to ensure statistical validity and power.
• Critically evaluate primary scientific literature pertaining to biostatistical and bioinformatics methodologies.
• Conduct gene prediction and sequence alignment, and perform DNA and protein database searches.
• Navigate and utilize major bioinformatics databases and tools, including NCBI, EBI, PDB, UCSC Genome Browser, DAVID Bioinformatics, and STRING for protein-protein interaction networks.
• Explore, visualize, and analyze biological data, including the application of principal component analysis (PCA) using the R programming language.
• Demonstrate understanding of high-throughput sequencing technologies and their applications in genomics.
• Perform phylogenetic and hierarchical clustering analyses to assess intra- and inter-species variation and estimate evolutionary divergence.
• Analyze transcriptomic data using RNA-Seq datasets, applying appropriate computational and statistical techniques.

Course Requirements and Eligibility:

This course does not require a textbook; however, a foundational understanding of basic biological concepts is essential for successful participation. No prior programming experience or advanced mathematical training is necessary. Students must have access to a personal computer capable of running free bioinformatics software and accessing publicly available data resources.

All course materials—including lectures, computer lab exercises, instructional videos, scientific manuscripts (PDFs), and datasets—will be provided through the Canvas learning management system.

As part of the course, students will deliver a presentation on a pre-approved bioinformatics topic of their choice during the final week. Active participation and regular attendance are required to complete the course successfully. All lecture and laboratory sessions will be recorded and made available asynchronously for review purposes.

Marine Biology: Mammalian (dolphins and sea lions) Chemistry and Genomics

• Dates: June 30, 2025 to August 1, 2025
• Units: 4.00 Pre-College units, 9000 level
• Open to: 10th-12th grade students
• Application: Click here to apply!
• Application Deadline: Closed
• Course Delivery: Hybrid
• Tuition: $3,000
• Schedule:
  • There are two summer 2025 sections; a morning and an afternoon session. You will need to specify on your application which session you would like to join. Failure to do so will result in a rejected application. 
  • Morning session:
    • Mondays and Wednesdays, live-online, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. PT.
    • Tuesdays and Thursdays, in-person, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. PT in the Boz Life Science Research and Teaching Institute. 
  • Afternoon session:
    • Mondays and Wednesdays, in-person, 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. PT in the Boz Life Science Research and Teaching Institute. 
    • Tuesdays and Thursdays, live-online, 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. PT.

Course Description:

Marine mammal physiology and overall health are closely influenced by water quality and environmental exposures—factors that are particularly impactful for animals inhabiting semi-enclosed or non-open sea environments for extended periods. The exposome, or cumulative measure of environmental exposures, encompasses a range of factors including diet, pathogens, and contaminants such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which are known to possess mutagenic, carcinogenic, and endocrine-disrupting properties.

This hybrid research course investigates the impact of environmental exposures on marine mammals, particularly dolphins and sea lions, through the assessment of water quality in various locations within the San Diego Bay, including animal pens, adjacent waters, and potential pollution sources. The course meets four times per week—twice virtually and twice in person in a laboratory setting.

A key component of the course involves the deployment of Composite Integrative Passive Samplers (CIPS) at selected sites. These advanced sensors capture both hydrophilic and lipophilic compounds and enable the characterization of over 1,000 chemical entities, including known carcinogens, mutagens, and other persistent organic pollutants. In addition to chemical profiling of seawater, students will collect data on standard water quality parameters such as pH, salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and conductivity.

Biological sampling will include bay mussels and oysters collected from study sites. Their tissues will undergo chemical content analysis and metagenomic sequencing to quantify the presence of microbial communities, including bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Depending on the outcomes of the chemical and microbiological analyses, archived biological specimens from marine mammals (e.g., blood, brain, and blubber samples) will be utilized for comparative chemical assessments. These analyses aim to deepen our understanding of how industrial pollutants affect the health of marine mammals residing in the San Diego Bay.

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Identify marine mammal species using genotyping techniques and phylogenetic analysis.
• Formulate testable scientific hypotheses and design statistically robust experiments.
• Critically evaluate primary scientific literature related to molecular biology and environmental health.
• Demonstrate understanding of key molecular biology concepts, including DNA and RNA structure, transcription, and gene expression analysis.
• Extract and assess the quality and integrity of RNA and DNA from biological samples.
• Interpret tissue-specific analytical chemistry data to assess environmental exposures.
• Perform metagenomic sequencing using Nanopore technology.
• Apply fundamental bioinformatics tools to analyze sequencing data and determine biological significance.
• Design and present a scientific research poster in a formal seminar setting.

Course Topics:

• Anatomy and physiology of marine mammals
• Microdissection techniques for marine mammal and invertebrate tissues
• Genotype–phenotype relationships and their biological implications
• Comparative analysis of DNA and RNA structure and function
• Principles of analytical chemistry with a focus on primary organic pollutants
• Fundamentals of microbiology in marine environments
• Introduction to metagenomics and microbial community profiling
• The central dogma of molecular biology: DNA → RNA → Protein
• Experimental design and hypothesis-driven research methodology
• Applications of biostatistics and bioinformatics in environmental and molecular biology
• Introduction to Nanopore sequencing technology and its research applications
• Quantitative and qualitative data analysis in biological research
• Scientific communication through written reports and oral presentations