Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Molecular Biology and Biological Chemistry -- The Genetic Material -- Gene Structure and Information Content -- Protein Structure and Function -- The Nature of Chemical Bonds -- Molecular Biology Tools -- Genomic Information Content -- 2. Data Searches and Pairwise Alignments -- Dot Plots -- Simple Alignments -- Gaps -- Scoring Matrices -- Dynamic Programming: The Needleman and Wunsch Algorithm -- Global and Local Alignments -- Database Searches -- Multiple Sequence Alignments -- 3. Substitution Patterns -- Patterns of Substitutions within Genes -- Estimating Substitution Numbers -- Variations in Evolutionary Rates between Genes -- Molecular Clocks -- Evolution in Organelles -- 4. Distance-Based Methods of Phylogenetics -- History of Molecular Phylogenetics -- Advantages to Molecular Phylogenies -- Phylogenetic Trees -- Distance Matrix Methods -- Maximum Likelihood Approaches -- Multiple Sequence Alignments --

5. Character-Based Methods of Phylogenetics -- Parsimony -- Inferred Ancestral Sequences -- Strategies for Faster Searches -- Consensus Trees -- Tree Confidence -- Comparison of Phylogenetic Methods -- Molecular Phylogenies -- 6. Genomics and Gene Recognition -- Prokaryotic Genomes -- Prokaryotic Gene Structure -- GC Content in Prokaryotic Genomes -- Prokaryotic Gene Density -- Eukaryotic Genomes -- Eukaryotic Gene Structure -- Open Reading Frames -- GC Content in Eukaryotic Genomes -- Gene Expression -- Transposition -- Repetitive Elements -- Eukaryotic Gene Density -- 7. Protein and RNA Structure Prediction -- Amino Acids -- Polypeptide Composition -- Secondary Structure -- Tertiary and Quaternary Structure -- Algorithms for Modeling Protein Folding -- Structure Prediction -- Predicting RNA Secondary Structures -- 8. Proteomics -- From Genomes to Proteomes -- Protein Classification -- Experimental Techniques --

Inhibitors and Drug Design -- Ligand Screening -- X-Ray Crystal Structures -- NMR Structures -- Empirical Methods and Prediction Techniques -- Post-Translational Modification Prediction. App. 1. A Gentle Introduction to Computer Programming and Data Structures -- App. 2. Enzyme Kinetics -- App. 3. Sample Programs in Perl.

"Fundamental Concepts of Bioinformatics is the first textbook co-authored by a biologist and computer scientist that is specifically designed to make bioinformatics accessible to undergraduates and prepare them for more advanced work. Students learn what programs are available for analyzing data, how to understand the basic algorithms that underlie these programs, what bioinformatic research is like, and other basic concepts.

Information flows easily from one topic to the next, with enough detail to support the major concepts without overwhelming students."--BOOK JACKET.