Bioinformatics Facility

The Bioinformatics Facility supports applied genomics research in the agri-food and aquaculture sectors, as well as other data-intensive domains of biology, such as high throughput phenotyping or phenomics. A suite of instruments is used for storing, organizing, and managing high throughput biological data produced by DNA sequencers and imaging equipment. The expertise of the facility is specialized to the sub-fields of plant, agricultural and aquaculture bioinformatics. Fields such as plant breeding require complex data analysis and statistical genetic methods that are not present in other life sciences and require appropriate bioinformatics support, which this facility provides. The hardware infrastructure is specialized to the needs of agricultural bioinformatics, and the facility is staffed by personnel with expertise in handling large and complex plant genomes. A core strength of the facility lies in the expertise in assembling genome sequences of complex polyploid crops, such as wheat, canola and pulse crops, and analysis of genetic diversity to enable genomics assisted improvement of agronomic and seed quality attributes.