PLSCI 6380

Fungal Genetics and Genomics

Course Description

Course information provided by the 2026-2027 Catalog.

Fungi play a vital role in our ecosystem but are also responsible for devastating crop infestations that threaten global food supplies and diseases that result in the deaths of millions of individuals each year. This course explores fungal biology through the lens of molecular genetics and genomics, including epigenetics, genome defense mechanisms, metabolism, and signaling pathways. We will cover the use of genetic tools in fungi ranging from molecular genetics to CRISPR to high-throughput sequencing. This course will cover data literacy through analysis of genetic and genomic data using Python and publicly available sequencing analysis software. The course will emphasize the development of professional skills, including critically reading scientific literature and data analysis. No prior coding experience necessary.

Prerequisites background equivalent to: BIOMG 2800 or PLSCI 2250.

Last 4 Terms Offered 2025SP, 2023FA, 2022SP

Learning Outcomes

• Explain the genetic and genomic principles governing fungi.
• Evaluate primary research papers on fungal genetics and genomics.
• Use Python and publicly available sequencing analysis programs to use quantitative reasoning to analyze transcriptomic data and draw conclusions from the data.
• Extract meaningful insights from data with quantitative methods.
• Apply the process of science.
• Design experiments to test hypotheses generated through quantitative data analysis

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